For a long-suffering Toronto FC fan base, it was history. For Sebastian Giovinco, it was about time. Toronto FC scored its first playoff goal in franchise history and advanced past the knockout round for the first time. Toronto will now face New York City FC in the conference semifinals in a match pitting a large majority of the league’s major star power.
Building off a record breaking 2015 season that saw an average attendance of 21,558, the 2016 MLS season managed to set another landmark by edging that total with an average attendance of 21,692 fans per game.
The growth of MLS is exemplified by this being the third consecutive season that the record has been broken. Leading the way for MLS is the Seattle Sounders (42,636 fans per game), Orlando City (31,324) and New York City FC (27,196).
Two Portland Timbers performed teamwork in maybe the worst way possible Monday. Goalkeeper Jake Gleeson crashed his BMW into the back of another car and called his teammate, team captain Liam Ridgewell (hey, what are captains for?) to come help him.
This seems like normal teammate behavior until you learn they the pair were reportedly both drunk and were arrested for Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants (DUII).
Eight months after the kick off to the 2016 campaign, the MLS season has finally reached the playoff stage. In a case of switching identifies, last year’s champions, the Portland Timbers, failed to make the knockout round, while typical basement dwellers Colorado were a pacesetting team from start to finish. San Jose, Houston and Vancouver join Portland on the outside looking in, all hoping to be next year’s Rapids.
After yet another impressive season, FC Dallas finish top of the Western Conference and MLS, winning the 2016 Supporters’ Shield.
After 34 matches, the MLS Eastern Conference gave us exactly what we expected in some cases and major surprises for other clubs. The 2015 Eastern semi-finalists, the New York Red Bulls (first on 57 points) and the Columbus Crew (36 points and in 9th place), going in wildly different directions.
We have hit another milestone in 2016 as 32-year-old New England Revolution striker Kei Kamara has become the first man, we assume, to receive a yellow card for twerking in the history of association football. This almost goes without saying, but he’s also the first former winner of the MLS Works Humanitarian of the Year award to receive a yellow card for twerking, a distinction that is unlikely to ever be replicated.
After a long (according to US standards) and historic run, the Columbus Crew Stadium, now known as MAPFRE Stadium, may be set to enter phase 2.0. The MLS reported this week that the club are beginning initial research into either expanding or rebuilding the Crew’s home.
Montreal Impact manager Mauro Biello has revealed that Didier Drogba refused to take part in Montreal’s playoff-deciding match against rivals Toronto FC on Sunday after being left out of the starting eleven.
Selected with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft, the first goalkeeper to ever earn that distinction, 25-year-old Jamaican international Andre Blake is reportedly set to leave MLS at the conclusion of the 2016 season.