2008 Major League Soccer season

The 2008 Major League Soccer season was the 13th season in the history of Major League Soccer. The season began on March 29 and ended with MLS Cup 2008, on November 23 at The Home Depot Center in Carson, California.[2]

2008 Major League Soccer season
Season2008
MLS CupColumbus Crew (1st title)
Supporters' ShieldColumbus Crew (2nd shield)
Champions LeagueColumbus Crew
New York Red Bulls
Houston Dynamo
D.C. United
SuperLigaChicago Fire
N.E. Revolution
Chivas USA
Kansas City Wizards
Matches played210
Goals scored591 (2.81 per match)
Top goalscorerLandon Donovan
Los Angeles Galaxy
Goals: 20
Biggest home winCOL 4–0 LA
CHI 4–0 NE
RSL 4–0 DCU
Biggest away winFCD 1–5 LA
NY 1–5 CHI
Highest scoringNY 4–5 COL
Longest winning run5 games:
Columbus Crew
Longest unbeaten run9 games:
Columbus Crew
San Jose Earthquakes
Longest losing run4 games:
D.C. United
Highest attendanceLA @ NY
Highest Gate: 46,754
Los Angeles Galaxy
Season: 390,132
Game Avg.: 26,009
Lowest attendanceCLB @ CHV
Lowest Gate: 6,733
Kansas City Wizards
Season: 160,286
Game Avg.: 10,686
Average attendanceMLS
Season: 3,456,641
Game Avg.: 16,460 [1]
← 2007
2009 →

Changes from the 2007 season
  • The San Jose Earthquakes returned to play as an expansion franchise in the Western Conference.
  • The top three teams from each conference qualified automatically for the playoffs (up from two). In addition the two highest remaining point totals, regardless of conference, also qualified (down from four).
  • Following the 2008 season, qualification for the SuperLiga was limited to the top four overall finishers not already qualified for the CONCACAF Champions League, after problems related to fixture congestion during the 2008 season. This applied retroactively to the 2008 season, and thus qualification for MLS teams to SuperLiga 2009.
  • Automatic qualification for the 2009 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup was awarded to the top six overall finishers, as opposed to the top three finishers in each conference.
  • Three teams signed new shirt sponsorship deals:
  • Bruce Arena's contract was not renewed by the New York Red Bulls, and Juan Carlos Osorio was hired from the Chicago Fire as a replacement.
  • The Chicago Fire promoted assistant coach Denis Hamlett to head coach.
  • Frank Yallop was traded by the Los Angeles Galaxy to the San Jose Earthquakes. 1987 Ballon d'Or and Euro 88 winner Ruud Gullit was hired as his replacement.
  • John Carver became the head coach of Toronto FC. Mo Johnston remains as manager, but has also taken a front office role as team's director of soccer.[3]
  • Bruce Arena replaced Ruud Gullit, who resigned from his role as head coach, and Alexi Lalas, who was fired from his role as president, as both head coach and general manager of the Los Angeles Galaxy.
  • Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah opened in October as the home of Real Salt Lake.
  • The Kansas City Wizards moved to the Kansas side of the metropolitan area, occupying CommunityAmerica Ballpark in Kansas City. This was intended to be a temporary move to the Ballpark, and is scheduled to end in 2011 with the opening of the Livestrong Sporting Park nearby.

Competition format

The format for the 2008 season was as follows:

  • The season ran from March 29 to November 23.
  • The 14 teams were split into two seven-team conferences. Each team played 30 games that were evenly divided between home and away games. Each team played every other team twice, home and away, for a total of 26 games. The remaining four games were played against four regional rivals, two at home and two away.
  • The three teams from each conference with the most points qualified for the playoffs. In addition, the next two highest point totals, regardless of conference, also qualified. 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 2008. 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 won the MLS Supporters' Shield and qualified for the CONCACAF Champions League 2009–10. The MLS Cup winner also qualified for the Champions League 2009–10. The MLS Cup runner-up qualified for the Champions League 2009–10. An additional berth in the Champions League was also awarded to the winner of the 2008 U.S. Open Cup. If a team qualified for multiple berths into the Champions League, then additional berths were awarded to the highest overall finishing MLS team(s) not already qualified. Also, Toronto FC, as a Canadian-based team, cannot qualify through MLS for the Champions League, and must instead qualify through the Canadian Championship.
  • The four teams with the most points in the regular season, regardless of conference, who have not qualified for the CONCACAF Champions League qualified for SuperLiga 2009.
  • The six teams, regardless of conference, with the most points also qualified for berths into the 2009 U.S. Open Cup. The rest of the U.S.-based MLS teams have to qualify for the remaining two berths via a series of play-in games.

Tiebreakers
  1. Head-to-Head (Points-per-match average)
  2. Overall Goal Differential
  3. Overall Total Goals Scored
  4. Tiebreakers 1-3 applied only to matches on the road
  5. Tiebreakers 1-3 applied only to matches at home
  6. Fewest team disciplinary points in the League Fair Play table
  7. Coin toss

NOTE: If more than two clubs are tied, once a club advances through any step, the process reverts to Tiebreaker 1 among the remaining tied clubs.

MLS Tiebreakers

Results table
Abbreviation and Color Key:
Chicago Fire - CHI • Chivas USA - CHV • Colorado Rapids - COL • Columbus Crew - CLB • D.C. United - DC
FC Dallas - DAL • Houston Dynamo - HOU • Kansas City Wizards - KC • Los Angeles Galaxy - LA • New England Revolution - NE
New York Red Bulls - NY • Real Salt Lake - RSL • San Jose Earthquakes - SJ • Toronto FC - TOR
Win  • Loss  • Tie  • Home
Club Match
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
Chicago FireRSLNESJKCCOLNEDCHOUNYDCDALCHVSJCLBTORRSLKCCHVNEDCLAHOUNYCOLDALLAKCCLBTORNY
1-10-41-01-01-23-02-02-15-12-10-10-20-02-21-20-00-00-12-11-01-01-20-10-24-11-31-12-22-32-5
Chivas USADALRSLCLBDALLAHOUNEDCCOLCLBNYRSLCHINYSJLACHIKCLAHOUSJTORTORNERSLKCDCSJCOLHOU
1-11-33-42-02-50-02-11-32-10-20-11-00-21-10-11-10-12-32-20-40-01-23-10-41-01-23-01-02-11-1
Colorado RapidsLAKCNESJCHIDCHOURSLCHVDALLATORHOUCLBNYSJDALCLBTORKCDCRSLDALCHINENYHOULACHVRSL
0-42-31-02-01-20-21-20-22-11-22-31-30-01-20-41-12-22-00-11-20-30-21-00-21-15-43-12-32-11-1
Columbus CrewTORNYCHVDCHOUKCSJTORNECHVSJKCLACOLCHIRSLKCCOLHOUDALRSLDALNETORNYNELACHINYDC
0-20-23-42-10-11-23-20-01-00-22-03-03-31-22-20-23-32-00-21-20-32-10-41-11-31-00-12-21-30-1
D.C. UnitedKCTORRSLCLBRSLCOLCHICHVTORTORNECHINYSJLAHOUKCNYCHINECOLNYSJDALLADALCHVHOUNECLB
0-21-40-42-11-40-22-01-30-12-32-22-11-41-31-42-00-24-11-01-20-30-01-22-22-50-33-00-01-20-1
FC DallasCHVHOUNYCHVNESJRSLLARSLHOUCOLNECHINYHOUKCCOLLATORCLBKCCLBCOLDCCHIDCSJTORRSLLA
1-13-30-22-01-00-01-25-11-22-21-21-20-10-11-11-12-20-42-01-21-12-11-02-24-10-31-12-21-32-2
Houston DynamoNEDALKCLACLBCHVCOLCHISJDALNYTORNECOLDALRSLDCCLBRSLCHVNYCHIKCSJTORCOLDCSJLACHV
0-33-30-02-20-10-01-22-11-22-20-11-32-00-01-10-02-00-23-40-40-31-21-31-11-13-10-01-20-31-1
Kansas City WizardsDCCOLNEHOUCHITORCLBNYLARSLCLBTORRSLDALNYCLBCHIDCCHVCOLDALSJHOULATORCHVCHINESJNE
0-22-33-10-01-00-21-21-11-30-03-00-00-11-11-23-30-00-22-31-21-11-21-30-20-21-21-10-12-33-1
Los Angeles GalaxyCOLSJTORHOUCHVRSLNYDALKCTORCOLSJCLBDCNECHVNYDALSJCHVCHINERSLKCDCCHICLBCOLHOUDAL
0-40-23-22-22-52-22-15-11-30-22-33-03-31-42-11-12-20-42-32-21-02-22-20-22-51-30-12-30-32-2
New England RevolutionHOUCHIKCCOLNYDALCHICHVSJCLBDCDALHOUNYRSLTORLACHISJDCTORLACLBCHVCOLCLBRSLKCDCKC
0-30-43-11-01-11-03-02-10-21-02-21-22-01-11-21-22-12-10-41-21-12-20-40-41-11-02-20-11-23-1
New York Red BullsCLBDALNESJTORLAKCCHIHOUCHVDCNEDALCHVCOLKCLASJDCTORHOUDCCHIRSLCLBCOLTORRSLCLBCHI
0-20-21-10-21-12-11-15-10-10-11-41-10-11-10-41-22-21-14-10-20-30-00-11-21-35-43-11-11-32-5
Real Salt LakeCHICHVDCTORDCLADALCOLDALSJKCCHVSJNEKCHOUCLBCHITORHOUCLBCOLLANYCHVSJNENYDALCOL
1-11-30-40-11-42-21-20-21-21-30-01-00-01-20-10-00-20-01-23-40-30-22-21-21-03-22-21-11-31-1
San Jose EarthquakesLACHICOLNYDALCLBNEHOURSLCLBLARSLDCCHICHVCOLTORNYLANECHVKCDCHOURSLDALCHVHOUKCTOR
0-21-02-00-20-03-20-21-21-32-03-00-01-30-01-01-10-01-12-30-40-01-21-21-13-21-11-01-22-30-2
Toronto FCCLBDCLARSLKCNYCLBDCDCLAHOUCOLKCNECHISJRSLDALCOLNYNECHVCHVCLBKCHOUNYDALCHISJ
0-21-43-20-10-21-10-00-12-30-21-31-30-01-21-20-01-22-01-00-21-11-23-11-10-21-13-12-22-30-2

Standings

For an explanation of the playoff qualifications, see Competition format.

Conference standings

Eastern Conference
Eastern Conference
Pos Club Pts GP W L T GF GA GD
1 Columbus Crew 57 30 17 7 6 50 36 +14
2 Chicago Fire 46 30 13 10 7 44 33 +11
3 New England Revolution 43 30 12 11 7 40 43 –3
4 Kansas City Wizards 42 30 11 10 9 37 39 –2
5 New York Red Bulls 39 30 10 11 9 42 48 –6
6 D.C. United 37 30 11 15 4 43 51 –8
7 Toronto FC 35 30 9 13 8 34 43 –9
2008 MLS Cup Playoffs
2008 MLS Cup Playoffs (Wild Card)

Western Conference
Western Conference
Pos Club Pts GP W L T GF GA GD
1 Houston Dynamo 51 30 13 5 12 45 32 +13
2 Chivas USA 43 30 12 11 7 40 41 –1
3 Real Salt Lake 40 30 10 10 10 40 39 +1
4 Colorado Rapids 38 30 11 14 5 44 45 –1
5 FC Dallas 36 30 8 10 12 45 41 +4
6 LA Galaxy 33 30 8 13 9 55 62 –7
7 San Jose Earthquakes 33 30 8 13 9 32 38 –6
2008 MLS Cup Playoffs
2008 MLS Cup Playoffs (Wild Card)

Overall standings
Pos Team Pld W L D GF GA GD Pts
1 Columbus Crew (SS, E1) 30 17 7 6 50 36 +14 57 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage 2
2 Houston Dynamo (W1) 30 13 5 12 45 32 +13 51
3 Chicago Fire 30 13 10 7 44 33 +11 46 2009 North American SuperLiga 4
4 Chivas USA 30 12 11 7 40 41 −1 43
5 New England Revolution 30 12 11 7 40 43 −3 43
6 Kansas City Wizards 30 11 10 9 37 39 −2 42
7 Real Salt Lake 30 10 10 10 40 39 +1 40 2008 MLS Cup Playoffs
8 New York Red Bulls 30 10 11 9 42 48 −6 39 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Preliminary Round 3
9 Colorado Rapids 30 11 14 5 44 45 −1 38
10 D.C. United 30 11 15 4 43 51 −8 37 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Preliminary Round 3
11 FC Dallas 30 8 10 12 45 41 +4 36
12 Toronto FC 30 9 13 8 34 43 −9 35
13 LA Galaxy 30 8 13 9 55 62 −7 33
14 San Jose Earthquakes 30 8 13 9 32 38 −6 33
Source:

(SS) = Supporters Shield winner; (E1) = Eastern Conference champion; (W1) = Western Conference champion

  • ^Note 1 - Toronto FC cannot qualify for the U.S. Open Cup, as it is a Canadian-based team.
    If they had qualified for an automatic berth into the U.S. Open Cup, the next highest placed team not already qualified would have qualified.
  • ^Note 2 - Toronto FC cannot qualify for the CONCACAF Champions League through MLS. Rather, they can qualify through the Canadian Soccer Championship.
    If they had qualified for the Champions League through MLS, then the highest placed team not already qualified would have qualified.
  • ^Note 3 - The winner of the 2008 MLS Supporters' Shield (Columbus Crew) qualified for the 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage. As they also won MLS 2008, the 2008 MLS Supporters' Shield runner-up (Houston Dynamo) also entered the Group Stage. The runner-up of MLS Cup 2008 (New York Red Bulls) and the winner of the 2008 U.S. Open Cup (D.C. United) qualified for the 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Preliminary Round.
  • ^Note 4 - SuperLiga 2009 berths are awarded to the top 4 finishing teams from MLS who do not qualify for Champions League (Chicago, New England, Chivas USA and Kansas City).

2008 MLS Cup Playoffs
Main article: 2008 MLS Cup Playoffs
  Conference Semifinals Conference Finals MLS Cup 2008
                             
E1 Columbus Crew 1 2  
E4 Kansas City Wizards 1 0  
  E1 Columbus Crew 2  
Eastern Conference
  E2 Chicago Fire 1  
E3 New England Revolution 0 0
E2 Chicago Fire 0 3  
  E1 Columbus Crew 3
  W4 New York Red Bulls 1
W1 Houston Dynamo 1 0  
W4 New York Red Bulls1 1 3  
  W4 New York Red Bulls 1
Western Conference
  W3 Real Salt Lake 0  
W3 Real Salt Lake 1 2
W2 Chivas USA 0 2  

1 The New York Red Bulls earned the eighth and final playoff berth, despite finishing fifth in the Eastern Conference. They represent the fourth seed in the Western Conference playoff bracket, as only three teams in the Western Conference qualified for the playoffs.

Statistics

Golden Boot
Main article: MLS Golden Boot
Rank Scorer Club GP G A
1 Landon Donovan Los Angeles Galaxy 25 20 9
2 Kenny Cooper FC Dallas 30 18 3
3 Edson Buddle Los Angeles Galaxy 27 15 3
4 Juan Pablo Angel New York Red Bulls 23 14 3
5 Brian Ching Houston Dynamo 25 13 5
6 Luciano Emilio D.C. United 27 11 5
7 Conor Casey Colorado Rapids 21 11 2
8 Jaime Moreno D.C. United 25 10 10
9 Chad Barrett Chicago Fire / Toronto FC 29 9 7
Chris Rolfe Chicago Fire 26 9 7

Goalkeeping leaders
Rank Goalkeeper Club GP MINS SHTS SVS GA GAA W-L-T SHO
1 Pat Onstad Houston Dynamo 24 2098 105 76 24 1.03 10-4-9 7
2 Jon Busch Chicago Fire 30 2700 156 122 33 1.10 13-10-7 10
3 Will Hesmer Columbus Crew 29 2610 132 97 33 1.14 17-6-6 10
4 Bouna Coundoul Colorado Rapids 17 1530 77 54 21 1.24 6-8-3 5
5 Joe Cannon San Jose Earthquakes 30 2700 166 124 38 1.27 8-13-9 9

Individual awards

Player of the Week
Week Player of the Week Club Week's Statline
Week 1 Terry Cooke Colorado Rapids 1 G (10') GWG, 2 A (67',80')
Week 2 David Beckham Los Angeles Galaxy 1 G (9') GWG, 1 A (38')
Week 3 Guillermo Barros Schelotto Columbus Crew 1 G (26'), 2 A (35', 71')
Week 4 Landon Donovan Los Angeles Galaxy 2 G (67', 84') GTG
Week 5 Landon Donovan Los Angeles Galaxy 3 G (18', 59', 77'), 1 A (84')
Week 6 David Beckham Los Angeles Galaxy 2 G (36', 40') GTG
Week 7 Robbie Rogers Columbus Crew 2 G (73', 81')
Week 8 Edson Buddle Los Angeles Galaxy 3 G (31', 39', 85') GWG
Week 9 Cuauhtémoc Blanco Chicago Fire 1 G (55'), 3 A (8', 48', 60') GWA
Week 10 Robbie Findley Real Salt Lake 1 G (48') 1 A (60') GWA
Week 11 Brian Ching Houston Dynamo 2 G (52', 69') GWG, 1 A (46')
Week 12 Edson Buddle Los Angeles Galaxy 3 G (6', 63', 68') GWG
Week 13 Landon Donovan Los Angeles Galaxy 2 G (4', 83')
Week 14 Steve Ralston New England Revolution 2 G (12', 59') GWG
Week 15 Adam Cristman New England Revolution 2 G (33', 37') GWG
Week 16 John Thorrington Chicago Fire 1 G (90+2') GWG
Week 17 Guillermo Barros Schelotto Columbus Crew 1 G (26') 2 A (33', 38')
Week 18 Kenny Cooper FC Dallas 2 G (15', 17') GWG, 1 A (36')
Week 19 Kenny Cooper FC Dallas 2 G (81', 90+1') GWG
Week 20 Juan Pablo Ángel New York Red Bulls 2 G (27', 50')
Week 21 Ronnie O'Brien San Jose Earthquakes 2 G (11', 87') GWG, 1 A (71')
Week 22 Guillermo Barros Schelotto Columbus Crew 1 G (25') 2 A (15', 55') GWA
Week 23 Fabian Espindola Real Salt Lake 2 G (23', 59') GWG
Week 24 Guillermo Barros Schelotto Columbus Crew 1 G (39') GWG, 2 A (45', 67')
Week 25 Steve Ralston New England Revolution 1 G (90+2') 2 A (53', 83') GWA
Week 26 Landon Donovan Los Angeles Galaxy 3 G (23', 35', 90+2') 1 A (81')
Week 27 Conor Casey Colorado Rapids 3 G (11', 45', 90') GWG
Week 28 Brian Ching Houston Dynamo 2 G (2', 9') GWG 1 A (19')
Week 29 Brian McBride Chicago Fire 2 G (13', 79') GTG
Week 30 Claudio López Kansas City Wizards 1 G (18') 2 A (27', 90+3') GWA
Week 31 Chris Rolfe Chicago Fire 3 G (11', 38', 44') 2 A (53', 75') GWG

Player of the Month
Month Player of the Month Club Month's Statline
April Landon Donovan Los Angeles Galaxy 8 G, 2 A, Galaxy 2-2-1 in April
May Cuauhtémoc Blanco Chicago Fire 2 G, 4 A, Fire 3-1-0 in May
June Luciano Emilio D.C. United 7 G, 1 A, D.C. United 4-0-0 in June
July Nick Rimando Real Salt Lake 3 SHO, Real Salt Lake 2-0-2 in July
August Guillermo Barros Schelotto Columbus Crew 1 G, 6 A, Crew 3-1-0 in August
September Darren Huckerby San Jose Earthquakes 3 G, 1 A, Earthquakes 1-1-1 in September
October Juan Pablo Ángel New York Red Bulls 3 G, 1 A, Red Bulls 1-2-1 in October

Goal of the Week
Week Scorer Club Goal
Week 1 Sainey Nyassi New England Revolution 90+3'
Week 2 Geoff Cameron Houston Dynamo 90+1'
Week 3 Sacha Kljestan Chivas USA 33'
Week 4 Landon Donovan Los Angeles Galaxy 67'
Week 5 Marcelo Gallardo D.C. United 80'
Week 6 Chris Rolfe Chicago Fire 29'
Week 7 Cuauhtémoc Blanco Chicago Fire 62'
Week 8 Marcelo Gallardo D.C. United 30'
Week 9 Tam McManus Colorado Rapids 80'
Week 10 Robbie Findley Real Salt Lake 48'
Week 11 Luciano Emilio D.C. United 90+3'
Week 12 Clyde Simms D.C. United 26'
Week 13 Gonzalo Martínez D.C. United 55'
Week 14 Luciano Emilio D.C. United 37'
Week 15 Ante Razov Chivas USA 88'
Week 16 Ante Razov Chivas USA 15'
Week 17 Juan Pablo Angel New York Red Bulls 71'
Week 18 Abe Thompson FC Dallas 89'
Week 19 Jaime Moreno D.C. United 60'
Week 20 Chad Barrett Toronto FC 44'
Week 21 Brian Carroll Columbus Crew 62'
Week 22 Joe Vide D.C. United 45'
Week 23 Fabian Espindola Real Salt Lake 59'
Week 24 Santino Quaranta D.C. United 76'
Week 25 Davy Arnaud Kansas City Wizards 69'
Week 26 Robbie Rogers Columbus Crew 46'
Week 27 Josh Wolff Kansas City Wizards 70'
Week 28 Andy Williams Real Salt Lake 73'
Week 29 Brandon McDonald Los Angeles Galaxy 80'
Week 30 Danny Cepero New York Red Bulls 83'
Week 31 Brad Evans Columbus Crew 77'

Team attendance totals

[4]

Club Games Season Game Avg.
Los Angeles Galaxy 15 390,132 26,009
Toronto FC 15 301,793 20,120
D.C. United 15 297,531 19,835
New England Revolution 15 263,706 17,580
Chicago Fire 15 255,511 17,034
Houston Dynamo 15 254,083 16,939
Real Salt Lake 15 242,690 16,179
New York Red Bulls 15 238,925 15,928
Chivas USA 15 226,717 15,114
Columbus Crew 15 219,332 14,622
San Jose Earthquakes 15 205,695 13,713
Colorado Rapids 15 204,884 13,659
FC Dallas 15 195,356 13,024
Kansas City Wizards 15 160,286 10,686
OVERALL 210 3,456,641 16,460

International competitions

CONCACAF Champions' Cup 2008

The Houston Dynamo and D.C. United earned berths in the CONCACAF Champions' Cup by virtue of their MLS Cup and Supporters' Shield wins, respectively. Houston and D.C. were both victorious in their quarterfinal ties and advanced to the semifinals. For the second straight year, however, both lost their respective semifinals, and were eliminated.

SuperLiga 2008

D.C. United, Chivas USA, the New England Revolution, and the Houston Dynamo were MLS's entrants into SuperLiga 2008, based on their top-four finish in the 2007 regular season.

Following the Group Stage, which took place from July 12 to July 20, Houston and New England each won their respective groups to advance to the Semifinals, where they faced 2007 champion Pachuca on July 29 and Atlante on July 30, respectively. D.C. United finished last and Chivas USA finished third in their respective groups and failed to advance.

Both MLS teams were victorious in the Semifinals, setting up a rematch of the 2006 and 2007 MLS Cups in the Final on August 5 at Gillette Stadium.

The teams played to a 2-2 draw after extra time. New England eventually defeated Houston 6-5 on penalty kicks.

CONCACAF Champions League 2008–09

The Houston Dynamo (MLS Cup winner), D.C. United (Supporters' Shield Winner), the New England Revolution (U.S. Open Cup winner and MLS Cup runner-up), and Chivas USA (Supporters' Shield runner-up) were the representatives in the rebranded successor to the CONCACAF Champions' Cup.

New England and Chivas USA entered at the Preliminary Round, and were eliminated over two legs by Joe Public of Trinidad and Tobago and Tauro of Panama, respectively.

D.C. and Houston were seeded into the Group Stage as the top seeds in Groups A and B, respectively.

D.C. was eliminated from Group A with two games remaining in group play, while Houston qualified for the Championship Round with a 1-0 win in their last match against Luis Ángel Firpo on November 26, which was postponed from Matchday 1 due to Hurricane Ike.

Houston was eliminated in the Quarterfinals over two legs by Atlante.

National competitions

2008 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup

MLS awarded the top three finishers in each conference last season automatic berths into the 2008 U.S. Open Cup's Third Round. D.C. United, the New England Revolution, and the New York Red Bulls qualified from the Eastern Conference while Chivas USA, the Houston Dynamo, and FC Dallas qualified from the Western Conference. The rest of MLS's U.S.-based teams would have to compete for the final two berths into the Third Round via a seven-team playoff. Eventually Chicago Fire and the Kansas City Wizards qualified by beating the Columbus Crew and the Colorado Rapids respectively.

Each of the qualified MLS teams was matched up against the winner of a Second Round game, all of whom came from either one of the USL's three divisions or the USASA, in the Third Round on July 1. Three MLS teams were eliminated by these lower division clubs. Chivas USA was eliminated by USL-1's Seattle Sounders, the New York Red Bulls were upset by Crystal Palace Baltimore of USL-2, and the Houston Dynamo lost a penalty shootout to the USL-1's Charleston Battery.

In the Quarterfinals on July 8, FC Dallas and the Kansas City Wizards were eliminated by the Charleston Battery and the Seattle Sounders, respectively. This meant an MLS team, either D.C. United or the New England Revolution would face a USL-1 team in the final.

In the Semifinals on August 12, D.C. United upset the Open Cup holding Revolution by a score of 3 to 1. This earned United a berth in the final against the USL-1's Charleston Battery on September 3 at RFK Stadium.

In the Final on September 3, D.C. United won their second U.S. Open Cup in a 2-1 win over the Charleston Battery.

2008 Canadian Championship
Main article: 2008 Canadian Championship

Due to the fact that none of the Canadian teams playing in the American soccer pyramid can qualify for Canada's berth in the CONCACAF Champions League through their leagues or the U.S. Open Cup, the Canadian Soccer Association was forced to develop a tournament to determine the country's representative in the Champions League. The country's top three teams, MLS's Toronto FC and the USL-1's Montreal Impact and Vancouver Whitecaps FC were entered into the inaugural Canadian Championship. The tournament was played as a double round robin group from May 27 to July 22. The Montreal Impact finished first, claiming the Canadian berth in the Champions League.

All-Star game
Main article: 2008 MLS All-Star Game

The 2008 MLS All-Star Game was held at BMO Field in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, home of Toronto FC, on July 24.[5] The opponent was West Ham United, of England's Premier League. It was the first time that the game was played outside the United States.

The game was won by the MLS All-Stars by a score of 3-2. Cuauhtémoc Blanco was named MVP of the game after assisting the All-Stars' first goal and scoring their second.

Coaches

Eastern Conference

Western Conference

See also

References
  1. "MLS attendance down despite Seattle bump". CNN. October 28, 2009. Retrieved April 22, 2010.
  2. "MLS Cup 2008 Awarded to Los Angeles".
  3. Toronto FC: Roster: Player Bio Archived March 2, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  4. http://www.the90thminute.com/soccer/2009/05/major-league-soccer-attendance-down-ny-kc-and-dallas-averaging-under-10000/
  5. Kelly, Cathal (February 28, 2008). "Luring Liverpool to Toronto would be an all-star coup". The Star. Retrieved April 22, 2010.
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