2006 Major League Soccer season

11th season of Major League Soccer

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Football league season

2006 Major League Soccer seasonSeason| 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| Kansas City Wizards
Season: 177,322
Game avg.: 11,083
Total attendance| 2,976,787
Average attendance| 15,504

← 2005

2007 →

D.C. United

New York

Columbus

New England

Chicago

Kansas City

Colorado

Dallas

Chivas USA

Galaxy

Houston

Salt Lake

class=notpageimage|

Locations of teams for the 2006 Major League Soccer season
Western Conference Eastern Conference

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.

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

[edit]

### Season format

[edit]

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

[edit]

Main article: List of Major League Soccer stadiums

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

[edit]

Team  | Head coach  | Captain  | Shirt sponsor

|
|
|

Chicago Fire |  Dave Sarachan |  | Honda
Chivas USA |  Bob Bradley |  | —
Colorado Rapids |  Fernando Clavijo |  | —
Columbus Crew |  Sigi Schmid |  Robin Fraser | —
D.C. United |  Piotr Nowak |  | Sierra Mist
FC Dallas |  Colin Clarke |  | RadioShack
Houston Dynamo |  Dominic Kinnear |  Wade Barrett | —
Kansas City Wizards |  Brian Bliss |  | U.S. Soccer Foundation
Los Angeles Galaxy |  Frank Yallop |  | Budweiser
New England Revolution |  Steve Nicol |  | Sierra Mist
New York Red Bulls |  Bruce Arena |  Youri Djorkaeff | Red Bull
Real Salt Lake |  John Ellinger |  Jason Kreis | —

### Coaching changes

[edit]

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

## Standings

[edit]

### Eastern Conference

[edit]

Pos | Team

* v
* t
* e

| 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

[edit]

Pos | Team

* v
* t
* e

| 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

[edit]

Pos | Team

* v
* t
* e

| 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

## MLS Cup Playoffs

[edit]

| 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

[edit]

October 21, 2006

D.C. United| 1–0| New York Red Bulls

|
|

Gómez 77' | Report |

Giants Stadium
East Rutherford, New Jersey

Attendance: 8,630

Referee: Michael Kennedy

October 29, 2006

New York Red Bulls| 1–1| D.C. United

|
|

Altidore 70' | Report | Gómez 86'

RFK Stadium
Washington, D.C.

Attendance: 21,455

Referee: Tim Weyland

D.C. United advance 2–1 on aggregate.

* * *

October 22, 2006

New England Revolution| 0–1| Chicago Fire

|
|

| Report | Mapp 35'

Toyota Park
Bridgeview, Illinois

Attendance: 10,217

Referee: Tim Weyland

October 28, 2006

Chicago Fire| 1–2 (AET)| New England Revolution

|
|

Jaqua 18' | (Report) | Twellman 41'
Noonan 58'
Penalties
Thiago
Gutiérrez
Herron
Guerrero | 2–4 |  Cancela
Reis
Noonan
Twellman

Gillette Stadium
Foxborough, Massachusetts

Attendance: 9,372

Referee: Jair Marrufo

New England Revolution advance 4–2 on penalties (2–2 aggregate after extra time).

* * *

October 21, 2006

FC Dallas| 2–1| Colorado Rapids

|
|

Ruíz 15'
Thompson 55' | Report | Cooke 23'
Martins 88'

INVESCO Field at Mile High
Denver, Colorado

Attendance: 4,176

Referee: Hilario Grajeda

October 28, 2006

Colorado Rapids| 3–2 (AET)| FC Dallas

|
|

Hernández 57', 83'
Mathis 114' | Report[permanent dead link] | Gbandi 29'
Ruíz 48'
Goodson 92'
Penalties
Mathis
Hernández
Kirovski
Beckerman
Karanka
Mastroeni | 5–4 |  Ruíz
O'Brien
Mulrooney
Vanney
Valakari
Sala

Pizza Hut Park
Frisco, Texas

Attendance: 15,486

Referee: Abiodun Okulaja

Colorado Rapids advance 5–4 on penalties (4–4 aggregate after extra time).

* * *

October 22, 2006

Houston Dynamo| 1–2| Chivas USA

|
|

Ching 75' | Report | Razov 45'
Palencia 68'

Home Depot Center
Carson, California

Attendance: 15,110

Referee: Jorge Gonzalez

October 29, 2006

Chivas USA| 0–2| Houston Dynamo

|
|

Palencia 57' 58' | Report | Davis 64' (pen.)
Ching 90+3'

Robertson Stadium
Houston, Texas

Attendance: 17,440

Referee: Michael Kennedy

Houston Dynamo advance 3–2 on aggregate.

* * *

### Conference finals

[edit]

November 5, 2006

New England Revolution| 1–0| D.C. United

|
|

Twellman 4' | Report |

RFK Stadium
Washington, D.C.

Attendance: 19,552

Referee: Kevin Stott

New England Revolution advances 1–0 in single elimination.

* * *

November 5, 2006

Colorado Rapids| 1–3| Houston Dynamo

|
|

Kirovski 4' | Report | Dalglish 10', 21'
Mullan 71'

Robertson Stadium
Houston, Texas

Attendance: 23,107

Referee: Brian Hall

Houston Dynamo advances 3–1 in single elimination.

* * *

### MLS Cup

[edit]

Main article: MLS Cup 2006

November 12, 2006

Houston Dynamo| 1–1 (AET)| New England Revolution

|
|

Ching 114' | (Report) | Twellman 113'
Penalties
Gray
Holden
De Rosario
Davis
Ching | 4–3 |  Joseph
Reis
Noonan
Twellman
Heaps

Pizza Hut Park
Frisco, Texas

Attendance: 22,427

Referee: Jair Marrufo

## Player statistics

[edit]

### Goals

[edit]

Rank | Player | Club | Goals

|
|
|

1  |  Jeff Cunningham | Real Salt Lake | 16
2  |  Christian Gómez | D.C. United | 14
Ante Razov | Chivas USA
4  |  Carlos Ruiz | FC Dallas | 13
5  |  Landon Donovan | Los Angeles Galaxy | 12
6  |  Jaime Moreno | D.C. United | 11
Dwayne De Rosario | Houston Dynamo
Taylor Twellman | New England Revolution
Kenny Cooper | FC Dallas
Brian Ching | Houston Dynamo

### Hat-tricks

[edit]

Main article: List of Major League Soccer hat-tricks

Player | Club | Against | Result | Date

|
|
|
|

Brian Ching | Houston Dynamo | Colorado Rapids | 5–2 | April 2
Peguero Jean Philippe | New York Red Bulls | Chivas USA | 5–4 | May 20
Edson Buddle | New York Red Bulls | Real Salt Lake | 6–0 | August 26
Amado Guevara | New York Red Bulls | Kansas City Wizards | 3–2 | October 14

### Assists

[edit]

Rank | Player | Club | Assists

|
|
|

1  |  Brad Davis | Houston Dynamo | 9
2  |  Jeff Cunningham | Real Salt Lake | 8
Christian Gómez | D.C. United
José Burciaga Jr. | Kansas City Wizards
Justin Mapp | Chicago Fire
Carey Talley | Real Salt Lake
Ronnie O'Brien | FC Dallas
Terry Cooke | Colorado Rapids
9  |  Landon Donovan | Los Angeles Galaxy | 7
Andy Dorman | New England Revolution
Sasha Victorine | Kansas City Wizards

### Clean sheets

[edit]

Rank  | Player  | Club  | Clean
sheets

|
|
|

1  |  Matt Reis | New England Revolution | 10
2  |  Kevin Hartman | Los Angeles Galaxy | 9
3  |  Troy Perkins | D.C. United | 8
4  |  Joe Cannon | Colorado Rapids | 7
Zach Thornton | Chicago Fire
6  |  Preston Burpo | Chivas USA | 5
Jon Conway | New York Red Bulls
Brad Guzan | Chivas USA
Tony Meola | New York Red Bulls
Pat Onstad | Houston Dynamo
Bo Oshoniyi | Kansas City Wizards
Darío Sala | FC Dallas

## Awards

[edit]

### Individual awards

[edit]

Award | Player | Club

|
|

Most Valuable Player |  Christian Gómez | D.C. United
Defender of the Year |  Bobby Boswell | D.C. United
Goalkeeper of the Year |  Troy Perkins | D.C. United
Coach of the Year |  Bob Bradley | Chivas USA
Rookie of the Year |  Jonathan Bornstein | Chivas USA
Comeback Player of the Year |  Richard Mulrooney | FC Dallas
Golden Boot |  Jeff Cunningham | Real Salt Lake
Goal of the Year |  Brian Ching | Houston Dynamo
Fair Play Award |  Chris Klein | Real Salt Lake
Humanitarian of the Year |  Michael Parkhurst | New England Revolution

### Best XI

[edit]

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

## Attendance

[edit]

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

## External links

[edit]

* MLS 2006 Season Stats

* v
* t
* e

Major League Soccer

* Seasons
* 2025 season
* Records and statistics
* 400 or more appearances
* 100 or more goals
* Hat-tricks
* Players Association
* Rivalry cups
* History
* Timeline
* Expansion
* U.S. Soccer
* Canada Soccer

Eastern Conference|

* Atlanta United FC
* Charlotte FC
* Chicago Fire FC
* FC Cincinnati
* Columbus Crew
* D.C. United
* Inter Miami CF
* CF Montréal
* Nashville SC
* New England Revolution
* New York City FC
* New York Red Bulls
* Orlando City SC
* Philadelphia Union
* Toronto FC

Western Conference|

* Austin FC
* Colorado Rapids
* FC Dallas
* Houston Dynamo FC
* Sporting Kansas City
* LA Galaxy
* Los Angeles FC
* Minnesota United FC
* Portland Timbers
* Real Salt Lake
* San Diego FC
* San Jose Earthquakes
* Seattle Sounders FC
* St. Louis City SC
* Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Former teams|

* Tampa Bay Mutiny (1996–2001)
* Miami Fusion (1998–2001)
* Chivas USA (2005–2014)

Personnel|

* Foreign players
* National team players
* International slots
* Designated Players
* Homegrown Players
* Generation Adidas Cup
* Transfers
* Coaches
* Owners
* Professional Referee Organization
* Professional Soccer Referees Association

Competition|

* MLS Cup
* Playoffs
* Finals
* Trophy
* Supporters' Shield
* SuperDraft
* Stadiums
* Attendance
* Television
* Broadcasters
* All-Star Game
* MLS Cup

Associated
competitions|

* All-Star Game
* MLS Next
* CONCACAF Champions Cup
* Campeones Cup
* Leagues Cup
* U.S. Open Cup
* Canadian Championship
* Reserve League
* eMLS Cup
* MLS is Back Tournament
* MLS Next
* MLS Next Pro

Other|

* Generation Adidas
* Performance in Champions Cup
* Hall of Fame
* Valuations
* Central Division (2000–2001)
* Fraser v. Major League Soccer (2002)

* Category
* Portal
* Multimedia

* v
* t
* e

2006 MLS season by team

* SuperDraft
* Supplemental Draft
* All-Star Game
* Playoffs
* MLS Cup
* Transfers

Eastern|

* Chicago Fire
* Columbus Crew
* D.C. United
* New England Revolution
* New York Red Bulls
* Kansas City Wizards

Western|

* Chivas USA
* Colorado Rapids
* FC Dallas
* Houston Dynamo
* Los Angeles Galaxy
* Real Salt Lake

* v
* t
* e

Major League Soccer seasons

1990s|

|  |  |  |  |  |  |  1996 |  1997 |  1998 |  1999

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2000s|

|  2000 |  2001 |  2002 |  2003 |  2004 |  2005 |  2006 |  2007 |  2008 |  2009

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2010s|

|  2010 |  2011 |  2012 |  2013 |  2014 |  2015 |  2016 |  2017 |  2018 |  2019

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2020s|

|  2020 |  2021 |  2022 |  2023 |  2024 |  2025 |  |  |  |

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* v
* t
* e

2006–07 in North and Central America and Caribbean association football (CONCACAF)

« 2005–06

Club tournaments in CONCACAF member countries between July 2006 and June 2007

2007–08 »

Domestic leagues|

* Belize '06 '07
* Canada '06 '07
* Costa Rica
* El Salvador '06 A '07 C
* Guatemala
* Honduras
* Mexico '06 A '07 C
* Nicaragua
* Panama '06 '07 A
* Trinidad and Tobago '06 '07
* United States '06 '07

Domestic cups|

* Canada '06 '07
* United States '06 '07

CONCACAF competitions|

* Champions' Cup
* Copa Interclubes UNCAF
* CFU Club Championship

*[Pos]: Position
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template
*[Pld]: Played
*[W]: Won
*[L]: Lost
*[T]: Tied
*[GF]: Goals for
*[GA]: Goals against
*[GD]: Goal difference
*[Pts]: Points