American Major League Soccer

Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional soccer league representing the sport's highest level in both the United States and Canada. MLS constitutes one of the major professional sports leagues of the United States and Canada. The league is composed of 20 teams—17 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada. The MLS regular season runs from March to October, with each team playing 34 games; the team with the best record is awarded the Supporters' Shield. The post season includes twelve teams competing in the MLS Cup Playoffs through November and December, culminating in the championship game, the MLS Cup. MLS teams also play in other competitions against teams from other divisions and countries, such as the U.S. Open Cup, the Canadian Championship, and the CONCACAF Champions League. MLS is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer).

Major League Soccer was founded in 1993 as part of the United States' successful bid to host the 1994 FIFA World Cup. The first season took place in 1996 with ten teams. MLS experienced financial and operational struggles in its first few years: The league lost millions of dollars, teams played in mostly empty American football stadiums, and two teams folded in 2002. Since then, MLS has expanded to 20 teams, owners built soccer-specific stadiums, average attendance at MLS matches exceeds that of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the National Hockey League (NHL), MLS secured national TV contracts, and the league is now profitable.

Instead of operating as an association of independently owned teams, MLS is a single entity in which each team is owned and controlled by the league's investors. The investor-operators control

#	Club	P	W	D	L	GD	Pts
1	Vancouver Whitecaps	30	16	7	7	32	55
1	Nashville SC	31	21	7	3	43	70
2	St. Louis City SC	30	14	9	7	15	51
2	Inter Miami	30	15	10	5	22	55
3	FC Dallas	30	14	9	7	8	51
3	New England Revolution	30	16	4	10	8	52
4	San Jose Earthquakes	30	13	9	8	10	48
4	Chicago Fire	30	14	6	10	8	48
5	Houston Dynamo	30	13	8	9	2	47
5	Charlotte FC	30	13	8	9	8	47
6	Los Angeles FC	31	12	10	9	15	46
6	Philadelphia Union	30	13	7	10	13	46
7	Seattle Sounders	30	11	9	10	2	42
7	Orlando City	30	12	5	13	-12	41
8	FC Cincinnati	30	10	9	11	-9	39
8	LA Galaxy	31	10	10	11	-9	40
9	Colorado Rapids	30	11	6	13	0	39
9	Columbus Crew	31	11	5	15	1	38
10	Real Salt Lake	30	10	6	14	-3	36
10	New York Red Bulls	30	10	6	14	-17	36
11	Portland Timbers	30	9	7	14	-5	34
11	Toronto FC	31	8	12	11	-11	36
12	San Diego FC	30	8	10	12	-3	34
12	New York City FC	30	8	10	12	2	34
13	Minnesota United	30	8	10	12	-8	34
13	DC United	30	7	12	11	-15	33
14	Austin FC	30	7	10	13	-18	31
14	Atlanta United	30	8	6	16	-14	30
15	Sporting Kansas City	30	6	4	20	-39	22
15	CF Montréal	31	6	7	18	-26	25

Tables are available for selected soccer competitions and seasons only. No positions are estimated.