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Since [[Major League Soccer]], the top level of [[Association Football|soccer]] in the United States, was created in 1993 with ten initial teams, it has expanded several times into new markets across the [[United States]] and in 2006 into Canada for the first time. MLS has announced a further rise to 18 teams by 2011.


==History==
===Foundation===
[[Major League Soccer]] was first established in 1993. It was a requirement of FIFA that the United States set up a professional first division in order to gain the rights to host the [[1994]] [[FIFA World Cup]].<ref>Insert footnote text here</ref> The United States had not had a fully professional soccer league since the collapse of the [[North American Soccer League]] in 1985.


==Speedy deletion of [[:Derjers International]]==
After being founded in 1967 the NASL had initially been very successful – particularly the [[New York Cosmos]] who fielded a number of world-famous stars including [[Pele]]. As the sport grew in popularity the number of teams rapidly grew reaching their peak in the early 1980s, when there were twenty four teams - nineteen in the [[United States]] and five in [[Canada]].
[[Image:Ambox warning_pn.svg|48px|left]] A tag has been placed on [[:Derjers International]], requesting that it be speedily deleted from Wikipedia. This has been done under [[WP:CSD#G11|section G11 of the criteria for speedy deletion]], because the article seems to be blatant advertising which only promotes a company, product, group, service or person and would need to be fundamentally rewritten in order to become an encyclopedia article. Please read [[Wikipedia:Spam|the guidelines on spam]] as well as [[Wikipedia:FAQ/Business]] for more information.


If you think that this notice was placed here in error, you may contest the deletion by adding <code>{{tl|hangon}}</code> to '''the top of [[:Derjers International|the page that has been nominated for deletion]]''' (just below the existing speedy deletion or "db" tag), coupled with adding a note on '''[[ Talk:Derjers International|the talk page]]''' explaining your position, but be aware that once tagged for ''speedy'' deletion, if the article meets the criterion it may be deleted without delay. Please do not remove the speedy deletion tag yourself, but don't hesitate to add information to the article that would would render it more in conformance with Wikipedia's policies and guidelines. Lastly, please note that if the article does get deleted, you can contact [[:Category:Wikipedia administrators who will provide copies of deleted articles|one of these admins]] to request that a copy be emailed to you. <!-- Template:Db-spam-notice --> <!-- Template:Db-csd-notice-custom --> [[User:CultureDrone|CultureDrone]] ([[User talk:CultureDrone|talk]]) 18:13, 10 October 2008 (UTC)
Since the NASL had collapsed in 1985, professional soccer teams had largely disappeared except in Canada where the [[Canadian Soccer League]] was formed with several former NASL clubs as members, until that league also folded in 1992.

There were a number of reasons for the failure of NASL, but one explanation was the lack of brand loyalty and poor siteing of teams. It was common for franchises to move around from city to city, and change names, which made it difficult to build a sustainable fan base. While teams placed in major urban centres such as [[New York City|New York]] had succeeded in drawing a large popular following, many other clubs in smaller cities struggled to attract crowds.

===Initial teams (1996)===
This experience led MLS to be extremely cautious in establishing new franchises, having identified the rapid overexpansion as being a major element in the collapse/failure of the NASL. It was decided to create twelve new teams, to be placed in carefully selected cities where there was believed to be a strong market for soccer.

Those chosen were largely done so on a fresh basiss rather than cities that had hosted teams in the NASL era. It was intended to expand further, as circumstances permitted. A key aim was to create several popular and profitable franchises as the backbone of MLS, before moving into other markets. The MLS had initially planned on a twelve team league, but this was cut back to ten when potential backers couldn't be found.<ref>Wangerin p.272</ref>

The initial ten teams created were [the [[Columbus Crew]], [[D.C. United]], the [[New England Revolution]], the [[Red Bull New York|NY/NJ MetroStars]], the [[Tampa Bay Mutiny]], the [[Colorado Rapids]], the [[FC Dallas|Dallas Burn]], the [[Kansas City Wizards|Kansas City Wiz]], the [[Los Angeles Galaxy]] and the [[San Jose Earthquakes|San Jose Clash]].

While [[New York]] and [[Los Angeles]] were awarded franchises the next five largest cities [[Chicago]], [[Houston]], [[Philadelphia]], [[San Deigo]] and [[Detriot]] were all without a team.<ref>Wanger p.272</ref>

Using [[American Football]] stadiums, the new league kicked off in 1996.

===First Expansion (1998)===
{{Main|Chicago Fire}} {{Main|Tampa Bay Mutiny}}
In 1998 the league expanded for the first time rising from ten teams to twelve. The two expansion teams were based in [[Chicago]] and [[Tampa, Florida|Tampa]]. The new teams were the [[Chicago Fire]] and [[Tampa Bay Mutiny]].

===Problems (1998-2001)===
After a promising start, attendances were falling and all clubs were losing money. In addition the teams were owned by a small number of owners hindering further expansion. These problems led MLS Commissioner [[Doug Logan]] to be replaced by [[Don Garber]] who had experience in the [[NFL]].

One of the methods of tackling these problems was an emphasis the construction of [[soccer-specific stadiums]] for existing and potential future members. This was for many years seen as a de facto requirement for any potential expansion franchise. In 1998 not one MLS team played in a SSS, while by 2008 the majority did so, with several other new stadiums in the pipeline.

===Withdrawal from Florida (2001)===
In 2001 the league announced the end of its two Floridian teams, [[Miami Fusion]] and the [[Tampa Bay Mutiny]] at the end of the 2001 season. This was for financial reasons. Both teams were withdrawn from the league, and folded. No new expansion franchises were granted that year – so the number of teams fell to ten once more.

The surprise performance of the [[United States Men's National Soccer Team]] at the 2002 World Cup, where they reached the [[semi final]]<ref>http://german.about.com/library/weekly/aa020614a.htm</ref>, sparked a recovery in the league’s fortunes, and attendances once again began to rise. The MLS began looking to expand once more, with a number of cities now interested in hosting new teams. The demand for an expansion team grew, which eventually allowed MLS to command an expansion fee of $40 million.

===Second Los Angeles Franchise and Salt Lake City (2004)===
The league added two new teams in 2004. [[Los Angeles]] became the first city to host two MLS teams, when [[Chivas USA]] was founded. They were linked to the Mexican club [[Club Deportivo Guadalajara]] and hoped to build a following amongst the [[Hispanic]] community. They share the [[Home Depot Stadium]] with their neighbours [[LA Galaxy]]. This created MLS’s first [[derby]] game.

[[Real Salt Lake City]] were created in 2004, owend by [[Dave Checketts]]. They played out of [[Rice-Eccles Field]] initially before moving to the [[Rio Tinto Stadium]] in 2008.

===Houston Dynamo (2005)===
{{Main|Houston Dynamo}}
In 200 The [[San Jose Earthquakes]] were put on hiatus, because of a failure to secure a [[soccer specific stadium]]. The players and the coach were moved to [[Houston]], [[Texas]] where they became the [[Houston Dynamo]], playing out of the [[Robertson Stadium]].

This was the first time a franchise had been relocated in MLS, thought it had been common in its predecessor the [[NASL]], though the league insisted they had plans to return to [[San Jose]]. After a three year hiatus the [[San Jose Earthquakes]] were reformed in 2007<ref>http://web.mlsnet.com/news/mls_news.jsp?ymd=20070718&content_id=106314&vkey=pr_mls&fext=.jsp</ref>, and resumed play in the MLS the following season.

===Expansion to Canada (2006)===
{{Main|Toronto FC }}
In 2005 the league announced the creation of a Canadian franchise to be based in [[Toronto]].<ref>[http://forums.soccerfansnetwork.com/showthread.php?t=35864 Name Toronto's MLS team?]</ref> This was confirmed on May 11 2006 when the new team name [[FC Toronto]] and logo were announced.
[[http://www.cbc.ca/sports/indepth/mls_toronto/index.html]] The club played their first season in MLS in 2006, finishing bottom.

The introduction of the MLS into Canada took MLS into a separate country for the first time, mirroring the set-up in [[Major League Baseball]] and the [[NBA]] which involve teams from both nations. MLS had announced their intentions to move into the Canadian market, and their had been strong support from the [[Canadian Soccer Association]] which believed it would be good for the Canadian game, after previous attempts at trying to create a separate Canadian professional league had failed.

In Europe the governing body [[UEFA]] has had a tendency to block any potential new leagues across [[national borders]], but there were no serious objections to the move into Canada from the [[North American]] Federation [[CONCACAF]].

In 2008 a [[Canadian Championship]] was set-up as the highest form of soccer in Canada, and to determine Canada’s qualifier for the [[CONCACAF Champions League]] . One of the founders was [[FC Toronto]]. However, it is intended to be complimentary to MLS rather than it competition with it.

===Philadelphia Franchise===
{{Main|Philadelphia MLS 2010}}
On February 28 2008 MLS announced that the sixteenth franchise would be awarded to [[Philadelphia]].<ref>http://web.mlsnet.com/news/mls_news.jsp?ymd=20080228&content_id=140965&vkey=pr_mls&fext=.jsp</ref> There had been a strong campaign to bring a team to the city with intense lobbying by supporters groups such as the [[Sons of Ben]].

Philadelphia had remained one of the largest Metropolitan areas in the US without a MLS franchise. The club has not been named yet, but are popularly known by the name Zolos.<ref>http://www.philadelphiaweekly.com/articles/16620/cover-story</ref> The new team announced their intention to construct a 20,000 seat stadium in [[Chester, Pennsylvania]].

===Seattle Franchise===
{{Main|Seattle MLS 2010}}
[[Seattle]] was awarded a franchise in 2008 in spite of the fact that the city did not have a [[Soccer-specific stadium]] or any plans to construct one. Instead they announced their intentions to play matches at [[Qwest Field]]. Following a vote by supporters, the team chose the name [[Seattle Sounders]], because of its heritage in Seattle soccer.

==Future==

==Bibliography==
* Goldblatt, David. The Ball is Round:A Global History of Football. Penguin Books (2007).
* Tossell, David. Playing for Uncle Sam: The Brits' Story of the North American Soccer League. Mainstream Publishing (2003).
* Wangerin, David. Soccer in a Football World:The Story of America's Forgotten Game. WSC Books (2006).

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Major League Soccer]]
[[Category:Soccer in the United States]]
[[Category:Soccer in Canada]]

Revision as of 18:20, 10 October 2008


Speedy deletion of Derjers International

A tag has been placed on Derjers International, requesting that it be speedily deleted from Wikipedia. This has been done under section G11 of the criteria for speedy deletion, because the article seems to be blatant advertising which only promotes a company, product, group, service or person and would need to be fundamentally rewritten in order to become an encyclopedia article. Please read the guidelines on spam as well as Wikipedia:FAQ/Business for more information.

If you think that this notice was placed here in error, you may contest the deletion by adding {{hangon}} to the top of the page that has been nominated for deletion (just below the existing speedy deletion or "db" tag), coupled with adding a note on the talk page explaining your position, but be aware that once tagged for speedy deletion, if the article meets the criterion it may be deleted without delay. Please do not remove the speedy deletion tag yourself, but don't hesitate to add information to the article that would would render it more in conformance with Wikipedia's policies and guidelines. Lastly, please note that if the article does get deleted, you can contact one of these admins to request that a copy be emailed to you. CultureDrone (talk) 18:13, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

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