2017 Major League Soccer season

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Major League Soccer
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Season 2017
MLS Cup Toronto FC (1st title)
Supporters' Shield Toronto FC (1st shield)
2019 Champions League
(United States)
Sporting Kansas City[lower-alpha 1]
2018 Champions League
(Canada)
Toronto FC[lower-alpha 2]
Matches played 374
Goals scored 1110 (2.97 per match)
Top goalscorer Nemanja Nikolić
(24 goals)
Best goalkeeper Stefan Frei
(13 shutouts)
Biggest home win 7 goals:
ATL 7–0 NE
(Sep 13)
Biggest away win 5 goals:
MIN 1–6 ATL
(Mar 12)
Highest scoring 8 goals:
DAL 6–2 RSL
(Jun 3)
LA 2–6 RSL
(Jul 4)
TOR 3–5 MTL
(Sep 20)
Longest winning run 6 games:
Toronto FC
(Apr 21 – May 13)
Longest unbeaten run 13 games:
Seattle Sounders FC
(Jun 17 – Sep 23)
Longest winless run 10 games:
LA Galaxy
(Jun 24 – Aug 27)
Longest losing run 6 games:
D.C. United
(Jun 24 – Jul 29)
Highest attendance 71,874
ATL 2–2 TOR
(Oct 22)
Lowest attendance 10,165
NYC 1–1 HOU
(Sep 23 at East Hartford)
Total attendance 8,269,919
Average attendance 22,112
2016
2018
  1. As 2017 U.S. Open Cup winner
    (see note for detail)
  2. As 2016 and 2017 Canadian Championship winner
    (see note for detail)

The 2017 Major League Soccer season was the 22nd season of Major League Soccer, top division of soccer in the United States and Canada. The regular season began on March 3, 2017 and concluded on October 22, 2017. The MLS Cup Playoffs began on October 25, 2017 and concluded with MLS Cup 2017 on December 9, 2017.

Two new clubs joined the league as expansion franchises: Atlanta United FC and Minnesota United FC. The two franchises were the 21st and 22nd teams in the league.[1]

Seattle Sounders FC were the defending MLS Cup champions, while FC Dallas were the defending Supporters' Shield champions. Toronto FC became the first Canadian team to win the Cup and Shield. Toronto's win of the Canadian Championship in the same year earned them the first domestic treble by an MLS side.

Teams

Stadiums and locations

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  1. ^ Non-soccer specific stadium and artificially reduced capacity.
  2. ^ Due to construction delays to Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta United FC played its home matches at Georgia Tech's Bobby Dodd Stadium during the first half of the season.[2]

Personnel and sponsorship

Note: All teams use Adidas as kit manufacturer.

Team Head coach Captain Shirt sponsor
Atlanta United FC Argentina Gerardo Martino United States Michael Parkhurst American Family Insurance
Chicago Fire Serbia Veljko Paunović Brazil Juninho Valspar
Colorado Rapids England Steve Cooke (interim) United States Tim Howard Transamerica
Columbus Crew SC United States Gregg Berhalter United States Wil Trapp Acura
D.C. United United States Ben Olsen United States Steve Birnbaum Leidos
FC Dallas Colombia Oscar Pareja United States Matt Hedges AdvoCare
Houston Dynamo Colombia Wílmer Cabrera United States Ricardo Clark BHP Billiton
LA Galaxy Germany Sigi Schmid United States Jermaine Jones Herbalife
Minnesota United FC England Adrian Heath Costa Rica Francisco Calvo Target[3]
Montreal Impact Canada Mauro Biello Canada Patrice Bernier Bank of Montreal
New England Revolution United States Tom Soehn (interim) United States Chris Tierney UnitedHealthcare
New York City FC France Patrick Vieira Spain David Villa Etihad Airways
New York Red Bulls United States Jesse Marsch United States Sacha Kljestan Red Bull
Orlando City SC United States Jason Kreis Brazil Kaká Orlando Health
Philadelphia Union United States Jim Curtin United States Alejandro Bedoya Bimbo Bakeries USA
Portland Timbers United States Caleb Porter England Liam Ridgewell Alaska Airlines
Real Salt Lake United States Mike Petke United States Kyle Beckerman LifeVantage
San Jose Earthquakes United States Chris Leitch United States Chris Wondolowski Sutter Health
Seattle Sounders FC United States Brian Schmetzer Cuba Osvaldo Alonso Xbox
Sporting Kansas City United States Peter Vermes United States Matt Besler Ivy Funds
Toronto FC United States Greg Vanney United States Michael Bradley Bank of Montreal
Vancouver Whitecaps FC Wales Carl Robinson Costa Rica Kendall Waston Bell Canada

Coaching changes

Team Outgoing coach Manner of departure Date of
vacancy
Position in table Incoming coach Date of
appointment
Houston Dynamo United States Wade Barrett (interim) End of interim period October 28, 2016 Pre-season Colombia Wílmer Cabrera October 28, 2016
LA Galaxy United States Bruce Arena Signed by United States November 22, 2016 United States Curt Onalfo December 13, 2016
Real Salt Lake United States Jeff Cassar Mutual consent March 20, 2017 10th in West, 19th overall United States Daryl Shore (interim) March 20, 2017
United States Daryl Shore (interim) End of interim period March 29, 2017 9th in West, 19th overall United States Mike Petke March 29, 2017
San Jose Earthquakes United States Dominic Kinnear Fired June 25, 2017 5th in West, 12th overall United States Chris Leitch June 25, 2017
LA Galaxy United States Curt Onalfo Fired July 27, 2017 9th in West, 19th overall Germany Sigi Schmid July 27, 2017
Colorado Rapids United States Pablo Mastroeni Fired August 15, 2017 10th in West, 20th overall England Steve Cooke (interim) August 15, 2017
New England Revolution United States Jay Heaps Fired September 18, 2017 8th in East, 16th overall United States Tom Soehn (interim) September 18, 2017

Regular season

Format

Current teams: Each team in the league (except for expansion teams Atlanta United FC and Minnesota United FC) played 17 home and 17 away games (for a total of 34 games) using the following format:[4]

  • 2 games (home and away) against 10 teams in its conference (20 games).
  • 1 extra game against 3 of its conference rivals (3 games).
  • 1 game against 11 teams in the other conference (11 games).

Expansion teams: As expansion teams to the league in 2017, Atlanta United and Minnesota United played 17 home and 17 away games (for a total of 34 games) in a secondary format:

  • 2 games (home and away) against 10 teams in its conference (20 games).
  • 1 extra game against 2 of its conference rivals (2 games).
  • 1 game against 10 teams in the other conference (10 games).
  • 2 games (1 home and 1 away) against each other (2 games).

Conference standings

Eastern Conference

Template:2017 Major League Soccer Eastern Conference table

Western Conference

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Portland Timbers 34 15 8 11 60 50 +10 53 Conference semifinals[lower-alpha 1]
2 Seattle Sounders FC 34 14 11 9 52 39 +13 53
3 Vancouver Whitecaps FC 34 15 7 12 50 49 +1 52 Knockout round
4 Houston Dynamo 34 13 11 10 57 45 +12 50
5 Sporting Kansas City 34 12 13 9 40 29 +11 49
6 San Jose Earthquakes 34 13 7 14 39 60 −21 46
7 FC Dallas 34 11 13 10 48 48 0 46
8 Real Salt Lake 34 13 6 15 48 56 −8 45
9 Minnesota United FC 34 10 6 18 47 70 −23 36
10 Colorado Rapids 34 9 6 19 31 51 −20 33
11 LA Galaxy 34 8 8 18 45 67 −22 32
Source: MLS
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) total wins; 3) total goal differential; 4) total goals scored; 5) disciplinary points; 6) away goal differential; 7) away goals scored; 8) home goals scored; 9) home goal differential; 10) coin toss or drawing of lots
Notes:
  1. Due to a change in format for the CONCACAF Champions League, the regular season conference champions did not automatically earn a berth in the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League.[5]

Overall table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification[lower-alpha 1]
1 Toronto FC (C, X) 34 20 9 5 74 37 +37 69 2018 CONCACAF Champions League
2 New York City FC 34 16 9 9 56 43 +13 57
3 Chicago Fire 34 16 7 11 61 47 +14 55
4 Atlanta United FC 34 15 10 9 70 40 +30 55
5 Columbus Crew 34 16 6 12 53 49 +4 54
6 Portland Timbers 34 15 8 11 60 50 +10 53
7 Seattle Sounders FC 34 14 11 9 52 39 +13 53
8 Vancouver Whitecaps FC 34 15 7 12 50 49 +1 52
9 New York Red Bulls 34 14 8 12 53 47 +6 50
10 Houston Dynamo 34 13 11 10 57 45 +12 50
11 Sporting Kansas City 34 12 13 9 40 29 +11 49 2019 CONCACAF Champions League
12 San Jose Earthquakes 34 13 7 14 39 60 −21 46
13 FC Dallas 34 11 13 10 48 48 0 46
14 Real Salt Lake 34 13 6 15 49 55 −6 45
15 New England Revolution 34 13 6 15 53 61 −8 45
16 Philadelphia Union 34 11 9 14 50 47 +3 42
17 Montreal Impact 34 11 6 17 52 58 −6 39
18 Orlando City SC 34 10 9 15 39 58 −19 39
19 Minnesota United FC 34 10 6 18 47 70 −23 36
20 Colorado Rapids 34 9 6 19 31 51 −20 33
21 D.C. United 34 9 5 20 31 60 −29 32
22 LA Galaxy 34 8 8 18 45 67 −22 32
Source: MLS
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) total wins; 3) total goal differential; 4) total goals scored; 5) disciplinary points; 6) away goals scored; 7) away goal differential; 8) coin toss or drawing of lots
(C) Champion; (X) Supporters' Shield winner.
Notes:
  1. CONCACAF Champions League
    Selection Procedure
    • Four US-based teams qualified for the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League. Due to a change in format to the tournament, two qualifiers came from each of the 2017 and 2018 MLS seasons.[6] This combined qualification method was used for the 2019 tournament only. For the 2017 season, the following teams qualified:
      1. The winner of MLS Cup 2017; this berth was reallocated to the best US team in aggregate points in both 2017 and 2018 MLS seasons (New York Red Bulls) as Toronto FC won the Cup.
      2. The winner of the 2017 U.S. Open Cup (Sporting Kansas City).
      Thus unlike previous seasons, the Supporters' Shield winner and the regular season conference champion that did not win the Supporters Shield were not guaranteed a berth. Each qualifier entered at the second phase of the tournament.
      One Canada-based team qualified for the 2018 CONCACAF Champions League, also entering at the second phase (NOTE: Canadian teams could not qualify through MLS):
      1. The winner of both the 2016 and 2017 Canadian Championship (Toronto FC)

MLS Cup Playoffs

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Bracket

Knockout round

Team 1  Score  Team 2
Eastern Conference
Chicago Fire (E3) 0–4 New York Red Bulls (E6)
Atlanta United (E4) 0–0
(1–3 p)
Columbus Crew (E5)
Western Conference
Vancouver Whitecaps (W3) 5–0 San Jose Earthquakes (W6)
Houston Dynamo (W4) 1–0 (a.e.t.) Sporting Kansas City (W5)

Conference semifinals

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Eastern Conference
New York Red Bulls (E6) 2–2 (a) Toronto FC (E1) 1–2 1–0
Columbus Crew (E5) 4–3 New York City FC (E2) 4–1 0–2
Western Conference
Houston Dynamo (W4) 2–1 Portland Timbers (W1) 0–0 2–1
Vancouver Whitecaps (W3) 0–2 Seattle Sounders (W2) 0–0 0–2

Conference finals

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Eastern Conference
Columbus Crew (E5) 0–1 Toronto FC (E1) 0–0 0–1
Western Conference
Houston Dynamo (W4) 0–5 Seattle Sounders (W2) 0–2 0–3

MLS Cup

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Attendance

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Average home attendances

Ranked from highest to lowest average attendance.

Pos. Team GP Cumulative High Low Mean
1 Atlanta United FC 17 819,404 71,874 42,511 48,200
2 Seattle Sounders FC 17 742,314 51,796 40,182 43,666
3 Toronto FC 17 470,005 29,203 25,200 27,647
4 Orlando City SC 17 425,477 25,527 23,018 25,028
5 New York City FC 17 379,455 33,679 10,165* 22,321
6 LA Galaxy 17 378,128 25,667 17,404 22,243
7 Vancouver Whitecaps FC 17 364,073 25,083 17,368 21,416
8 New York Red Bulls 17 359,977 25,219 16,213 21,175
9 Portland Timbers 17 359,448 21,144 21,144 21,144
10 Minnesota United FC 17 349,138 35,043 17,491 20,538
11 Montreal Impact 17 340,783 34,373 16,005 20,046
12 San Jose Earthquakes 17 337,873 50,617 17,256 19,875
13 Sporting Kansas City 17 332,121 20,933 18,648 19,537
14 New England Revolution 17 329,233 33,767 10,487 19,367
15 Real Salt Lake 17 319,284 20,348 16,434 18,781
16 D.C. United 17 304,369 41,418 11,972 17,904
17 Houston Dynamo 17 297,507 22,115 14,148 17,500
18 Chicago Fire 17 295,511 21,891 11,244 17,383
19 Philadelphia Union 17 285,797 18,619 15,107 16,812
20 Columbus Crew SC 17 262,469 20,391 10,318 15,439
21 Colorado Rapids 17 260,476 17,648 13,102 15,322
22 FC Dallas 17 257,077 16,291 14,016 15,122
 – Total 374 8,269,919 71,874 10,165 22,112
  • game played at East Hartford

Highest attendances

Regular season

Rank Home team Score Away team Attendance Date Week Stadium
1 Atlanta United FC 2–2 Toronto FC 71,874 October 22, 2017 (2017-10-22) 33 Mercedes-Benz Stadium
2 Atlanta United FC 3–3 Orlando City SC 70,425 September 16, 2017 (2017-09-16) 28 Mercedes-Benz Stadium
3 Atlanta United FC 1–2 New York Red Bulls 55,297 March 5, 2017 (2017-03-05) 1 Bobby Dodd Stadium
4 Seattle Sounders FC 1–1 Portland Timbers 51,796 August 27, 2017 (2017-08-27) 25 CenturyLink Field
5 San Jose Earthquakes 2–1 LA Galaxy 50,617 July 1, 2017 (2017-07-01) 18 Stanford Stadium
6 Seattle Sounders FC 4–0 FC Dallas 48,478 October 15, 2017 (2017-10-15) 32 CenturyLink Field
7 Seattle Sounders FC 1–0 Portland Timbers 47,362 May 27, 2017 (2017-05-27) 13 CenturyLink Field
8 Atlanta United FC 1–3 D.C. United 46,011 April 30, 2017 (2017-04-30) 9 Bobby Dodd Stadium
9 Atlanta United FC 4–0 Chicago Fire 45,922 March 18, 2017 (2017-03-18) 3 Bobby Dodd Stadium
10 Seattle Sounders FC 3–1 New York Red Bulls 45,600 March 19, 2017 (2017-03-19) 3 CenturyLink Field

Player statistics

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