2006 Major League Soccer season
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.
| Season | 2006 |
|---|---|
| MLS Cup | Houston Dynamo (1st title) |
| Supporters' Shield | D.C. United (3rd shield) |
| 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 → | |

United
Red Bulls
Fire
Salt Lake
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.
Overview
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 | 19,096 |
| 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 | Fired | June 6, 2006 | June 7, 2006 | ||
| New York Red Bulls | Fired | June 27, 2006 | June 28, 2006 | ||
| New York Red Bulls | Interim | July 18, 2006 | July 18, 2006 | ||
| Kansas City Wizards | Resigned | July 19, 2006 | July 19, 2006 | ||
Standings
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 |
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 |
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 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head record; 3) goal difference; 4) number of goals scored
(C) Champion; (S) Supporters' Shield
MLS Cup Playoffs
| 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 |
Report | Gómez |
D.C. United advance 2–1 on aggregate.
| Chicago Fire | 1–2 (AET) | New England Revolution |
|---|---|---|
| Jaqua |
(Report) | Twellman Noonan |
| Penalties | ||
| Thiago Gutiérrez Herron Guerrero |
2–4 | |
New England Revolution advance 4–2 on penalties (2–2 aggregate after extra time).
| Colorado Rapids | 3–2 (AET) | FC Dallas |
|---|---|---|
| Hernández Mathis |
Report | Gbandi Ruíz Goodson |
| Penalties | ||
| Mathis Hernández Kirovski Beckerman Karanka Mastroeni |
5–4 | |
Colorado Rapids advance 5–4 on penalties (4–4 aggregate after extra time).
| Houston Dynamo | 1–2 | Chivas USA |
|---|---|---|
| Ching |
Report | Razov Palencia |
| Chivas USA | 0–2 | Houston Dynamo |
|---|---|---|
| Palencia |
Report | Davis Ching |
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 |
Report | Dalglish Mullan |
Houston Dynamo advances 3–1 in single elimination.
International competition
CONCACAF Champions' Cup
Los Angeles Galaxy
Lost
Deportivo Saprissa in quarterfinals.
New England Revolution
Lost
LD Alajuelense in quarterfinals.
Awards
Individual awards
Statistics
Goals
Assists
Goal-scoring totals
| Club | Overall Record | Goals For | Goals For Avg. | Goals Against | Goals Against Avg. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D.C. United | 15–7–10 | 52 | 1.63 (1st) | 38 | 1.19 (3rd) |
| FC Dallas | 16–12–4 | 48 | 1.50 (2nd) | 44 | 1.38 (9th) |
| C.D. Chivas USA | 10–9–13 | 45 | 1.41 (3rd) | 42 | 1.31 (7th) |
| Real Salt Lake | 10–13–9 | 45 | 1.41 (4th) | 49 | 1.53 (11th) |
| Houston Dynamo | 11–8–13 | 44 | 1.38 (5th) | 40 | 1.25 (4th) |
| Chicago Fire | 13–11–8 | 43 | 1.34 (6th) | 41 | 1.28 (5th) |
| Kansas City Wizards | 10–14–8 | 43 | 1.34 (7th) | 45 | 1.41 (10th) |
| New York Red Bulls | 9–11–12 | 41 | 1.28 (8th) | 41 | 1.28 (5th) |
| New England Revolution | 12–8–12 | 39 | 1.22 (9th) | 35 | 1.09 (1st) |
| Los Angeles Galaxy | 11–15–6 | 37 | 1.16 (10th) | 37 | 1.16 (2nd) |
| Colorado Rapids | 11–13–8 | 36 | 1.13 (11th) | 49 | 1.53 (11th) |
| Columbus Crew | 8–15–9 | 30 | 0.94 (12th) | 42 | 1.31 (7th) |
| Overall Totals | 503 | 2.62 |
Attendance
| 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 |