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The 2006 Major League Soccer season was the 11th season of Major League Soccer. It was also the 94th season of FIFA-sanctioned soccer in the United States, and the 28th with a national first-division league.
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (April 2023) |
| Season | 2006 |
|---|---|
| MLS Cup | Houston Dynamo (1st title) |
| Supporters' Shield | D.C. United (3rd shield) |
| 2007 CONCACAF Champions' Cup | Houston Dynamo D.C. United |
| Matches played | 192 |
| Goals scored | 503 (2.62 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Jeff Cunningham Real Salt Lake Goals: 16 |
| Biggest home win | NY 6–0 RSL |
| Biggest away win | NY 1–4 DCU LA 0–3 RSL DCU 2–5 LA |
| Highest scoring | NY 5–4 CHV |
| Longest winning run | D.C. United Wins: 6 (06/21 – 07/15) |
| Longest unbeaten run | D.C. United Wins: 14 (05/13 – 07/22) |
| Longest losing run | K.C. Wizards Loss: 7 (06/24 – 07/22) Los Angeles Galaxy Loss: 7 (05/06 -06/08) |
| Highest attendance | Los Angeles Galaxy Season: 333,016 Game avg.: 20,814 |
| Lowest attendance | K.C. Wizards Season: 177,322 Game avg.: 11,083 |
| Total attendance | 2,976,787 |
| Average attendance | 15,504 |
← 2005 2007 → | |
The MetroStars were bought by Austrian company Red Bull and rebranded as the New York Red Bulls.
Due to owner AEG being unable to secure a soccer specific stadium in San Jose, the Earthquakes ceased operations and had their personnel transferred to the expansion Houston Dynamo.
In June, the Chicago Fire moved into their new soccer-specific stadium, Toyota Park, in Bridgeview, Illinois.
The regular season began on April 1, and concluded on October 15. The 2006 MLS Cup Playoffs began on October 21, and concluded with MLS Cup 2006 on November 12. Houston marked their inaugural season with a league championship by defeating the New England Revolution on penalties in MLS Cup.
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Season format
The season began on April 1 and concluded with MLS Cup on November 12. The 12 teams were split evenly into two conferences. Each team played 32 games that were evenly divided between home and away. Each team played every other team in their conference four times, and every team in the opposite conference twice.
The top four teams from each conference qualified for the MLS Cup Playoffs. In the first round, aggregate goals over two matches determined the winners. The conference finals were played as a single match, and the winners advanced to MLS Cup. In all rounds, draws were broken with two 15-minute periods of extra time, followed by penalty kicks if necessary. The away goals rule was not used in any round.
The team with the most points in the regular season was awarded the MLS Supporters' Shield and qualified for the CONCACAF Champions' Cup. Additionally, the winner of MLS Cup also qualified for the CONCACAF Champions' Cup. If a team qualified for multiple berths into the Champions' Cup, then additional berths were awarded to the highest overall finishing MLS team(s) not already qualified. Qualification for the inaugural SuperLiga was also awarded to the MLS Cup Champion and Supporters' Shield winner, as well two invited teams, FC Dallas and LA Galaxy.
Automatic qualification for the U.S. Open Cup was awarded to the top three finishers in each conference. The rest of the U.S.-based MLS teams had to qualify for the remaining two berths via a series of play-in games.
Stadiums and locations
| Team | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago Fire | Toyota Park | 20,000 |
| Chivas USA | Home Depot Center | 27,000 |
| Colorado Rapids | Invesco Field at Mile High | 76,125 |
| Columbus Crew | Columbus Crew Stadium | 22,555 |
| D.C. United | RFK Stadium | 46,000 |
| FC Dallas | Pizza Hut Park | 21,193 |
| Houston Dynamo | Robertson Stadium | 32,000 |
| Kansas City Wizards | Arrowhead Stadium | 81,425 |
| Los Angeles Galaxy | Home Depot Center | 27,000 |
| New England Revolution | Gillette Stadium | 68,756 |
| New York Red Bulls | Giants Stadium | 80,200 |
| Real Salt Lake | Rice-Eccles Stadium | 45,017 |
Personnel and sponsorships
Coaching changes
| Team | Outgoing coach | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Incoming coach | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Galaxy |  Steve Sampson |
Fired | June 6, 2006 |  Frank Yallop |
June 7, 2006 |
| New York Red Bulls |  Mo Johnston |
Fired | June 27, 2006 | Richie Williams |
June 28, 2006 |
| New York Red Bulls | Richie Williams |
End of interim period | July 18, 2006 | Bruce Arena |
July 18, 2006 |
| Kansas City Wizards | Bob Gansler |
Resigned | July 19, 2006 | Brian Bliss |
July 19, 2006 |
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Eastern Conference
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | D.C. United | 32 | 15 | 7 | 10 | 52 | 38 | +14 | 55 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 2 | New England Revolution | 32 | 12 | 8 | 12 | 39 | 35 | +4 | 48 | |
| 3 | Chicago Fire | 32 | 13 | 11 | 8 | 43 | 41 | +2 | 47 | |
| 4 | New York Red Bulls | 32 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 41 | 41 | 0 | 39 | |
| 5 | Kansas City Wizards | 32 | 10 | 14 | 8 | 43 | 45 | −2 | 38 | |
| 6 | Columbus Crew | 32 | 8 | 15 | 9 | 30 | 42 | −12 | 33 |
Source: MLS
Western Conference
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FC Dallas | 32 | 16 | 12 | 4 | 48 | 44 | +4 | 52 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 2 | Houston Dynamo | 32 | 11 | 8 | 13 | 44 | 40 | +4 | 46 | |
| 3 | Chivas USA | 32 | 10 | 9 | 13 | 45 | 42 | +3 | 43 | |
| 4 | Colorado Rapids | 32 | 11 | 13 | 8 | 36 | 49 | −13 | 41 | |
| 5 | Los Angeles Galaxy | 32 | 11 | 15 | 6 | 37 | 37 | 0 | 39 | |
| 6 | Real Salt Lake | 32 | 10 | 13 | 9 | 45 | 49 | −4 | 39 |
Source: MLS
Overall standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | D.C. United (S) | 32 | 15 | 7 | 10 | 52 | 38 | +14 | 55 | CONCACAF Champions' Cup |
| 2 | FC Dallas | 32 | 16 | 12 | 4 | 48 | 44 | +4 | 52 | North American SuperLiga |
| 3 | New England Revolution | 32 | 12 | 8 | 12 | 39 | 35 | +4 | 48 | |
| 4 | Chicago Fire | 32 | 13 | 11 | 8 | 43 | 41 | +2 | 47 | |
| 5 | Houston Dynamo (C) | 32 | 11 | 8 | 13 | 44 | 40 | +4 | 46 | CONCACAF Champions' Cup |
| 6 | Chivas USA | 32 | 10 | 9 | 13 | 45 | 42 | +3 | 43 | |
| 7 | Colorado Rapids | 32 | 11 | 13 | 8 | 36 | 49 | −13 | 41 | |
| 8 | New York Red Bulls | 32 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 41 | 41 | 0 | 39 | |
| 9 | Los Angeles Galaxy | 32 | 11 | 15 | 6 | 37 | 37 | 0 | 39 | North American SuperLiga |
| 10 | Real Salt Lake | 32 | 10 | 13 | 9 | 45 | 49 | −4 | 39 | |
| 11 | Kansas City Wizards | 32 | 10 | 14 | 8 | 43 | 45 | −2 | 38 | |
| 12 | Columbus Crew | 32 | 8 | 15 | 9 | 30 | 42 | −12 | 33 |
Source: MLS
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head record; 3) goal difference; 4) number of goals scored
(C) Champions; (S) Supporters' Shield
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head record; 3) goal difference; 4) number of goals scored
(C) Champions; (S) Supporters' Shield
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| Conference semifinals | Conference finals | MLS Cup | |||||||||||||
| E1 | D.C. United | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | New York | 0 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | D.C. United | 0 | |||||||||||||
| Eastern Conference | |||||||||||||||
| E2 | New England | 1 | |||||||||||||
| E3 | Chicago | 1 | 1 (2) | ||||||||||||
| E2 | New England (p) | 0 | 2 (4) | ||||||||||||
| E2 | New England | 1 (3) | |||||||||||||
| W2 | Houston (p) | 1 (4) | |||||||||||||
| W1 | Dallas | 2 | 2 (4) | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Colorado (p) | 1 | 3 (5) | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Colorado | 1 | |||||||||||||
| Western Conference | |||||||||||||||
| W2 | Houston | 3 | |||||||||||||
| W3 | Chivas USA | 2 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Houston | 1 | 2 | ||||||||||||
Conference semifinals
| New York Red Bulls | 1–1 | D.C. United |
|---|---|---|
Altidore  70' |
Report | Gómez 86' |
D.C. United advance 2–1 on aggregate.
New England Revolution advance 4–2 on penalties (2–2 aggregate after extra time).
Colorado Rapids advance 5–4 on penalties (4–4 aggregate after extra time).
| Houston Dynamo | 1–2 | Chivas USA |
|---|---|---|
| Ching 75' |
Report | Razov 45' Palencia 68' |
| Chivas USA | 0–2 | Houston Dynamo |
|---|---|---|
Palencia  57'  58' |
Report | Davis 64' (pen.) Ching 90+3' |
Houston Dynamo advance 3–2 on aggregate.
Conference finals
New England Revolution advances 1–0 in single elimination.
| Colorado Rapids | 1–3 | Houston Dynamo |
|---|---|---|
| Kirovski 4' |
Report | Dalglish 10', 21' Mullan 71' |
Houston Dynamo advances 3–1 in single elimination.
MLS Cup
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Goals
Assists
Clean sheets
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Individual awards
Best XI
| Goalkeeper | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Troy Perkins, D.C. United |
Bobby Boswell, D.C. United José Burciaga Jr., Kansas City Jimmy Conrad, Kansas City |
Ricardo Clark, Houston Clint Dempsey, New England Dwayne De Rosario, Houston  Christian Gómez, D.C. United Justin Mapp, Chicago |
Jeff Cunningham, Salt Lake  Jaime Moreno, D.C. United |
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| Club | Games | Total | Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Galaxy | 16 | 333,016 | 20,814 |
| Chivas USA | 16 | 317,432 | 19,840 |
| Houston Dynamo | 16 | 302,957 | 18,935 |
| D.C. United | 16 | 291,442 | 18,215 |
| Real Salt Lake | 16 | 261,855 | 16,366 |
| FC Dallas | 16 | 239,714 | 14,982 |
| New York Red Bulls | 16 | 233,112 | 14,570 |
| Chicago Fire | 16 | 225,775 | 14,111 |
| Columbus Crew | 16 | 212,699 | 13,294 |
| Colorado Rapids | 16 | 192,894 | 12,056 |
| New England Revolution | 16 | 188,569 | 11,786 |
| Kansas City Wizards | 16 | 177,322 | 11,083 |
| Totals | 192 | 2,976,787 | 15,504 |
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