It began as an idea among fans to award a “championship” in the vein as most European leagues. It seems more chaotic, but at least it is a chaos that makes sense and has already been accepted in other sports that American watch. Since the 2000 season, the system of awarding points in Major League Soccer is the same as the international standard, three points for a win, one for a draw, and no points for a loss. As the Shield began to become more prized and grow in significance along with "supporter culture" growing throughout the League, the idea of creating a new Supporters' Shield began at the MLS Supporters Summit during the 2010 MLS Cup in Toronto. Supporters' Shield vs. MLS Cup: Backe Considers Cup Secondary To Shield Deleted User Contributor II February 14, 2011 Comments The cost of the new Shield was quoted at $18,000 with a majority of the funds raised through the "I Support the Shield" scarf drive that culminated in the sale of 2000 supporter scarves. Philadelphia Union opens the 2021 Major League Soccer campaign on Sunday, April 18th as they face off against Columbus Crew SC. Next MLS match: Sunday vs. New England, 3:30 p.m. For the first time in MLS’s 26-year history, the reigning MLS Cup champions and Supporters’ Shield winners will meet on the field to begin the season. USA Beats Mexico, Qualifies for World Cup, Valiant Trinidad and Tobago Falls to Mexico in Extra Time, Houston Dynamo lose on a pair of penalty kicks, Houston earned third draw in three MLS matches under Barrett, Houston Dynamo gain another road point in 1-1 draw at Dallas, Wenger earns MLS Player of the Week honors, 5 Dark-Horse Contenders to Watch During the 2016 MLS Season, Horst: the Glue that Keeps the Houston Dynamo Dominating. [12], Toronto FC and Los Angeles FC are the only Shield winners to reach the final of a CONCACAF competition. When Major League Soccer had its inaugural season in 1996, the league resembled its contemporary North American leagues. First contested in 1996, the MLS Cup was originally hosted by a predetermined … News. The middle of the trophy was designed to be expandable as its winners' names are added to it annually around the chevron. In the event of an end-of-season tie in total accumulated points, the following tie-breakers will be used: These are standard MLS regulations for breaking ties in point totals.[6]. Philadelphia raised its first trophy by winning the Supporters Shield, while Atlanta United missed the MLS Cup playoffs for the first time in their history, firing head coach Frank De Boer during the year. There are usually other “championships” that hold less importance that can be decided by playoffs or knockout game for example, FA Cup, Coppa Italia, and Copa de Rey, but those are usually seen as secondary titles that don’t mean as much as the regular season championship through points. If the league balanced the schedule and said the “league title” is the shield, it’d be great. Seven times in the league's history has the same club pulled off the double: winning both the Supporters' Shield and MLS Cup. I’m not in anyway stating that I don’t value the Supporters’ Shield, because the truth is that I want the Houston Dynamo to win it and prefer it over the MLS Cup. Nine teams have gone on to win the MLS Cup after winning the Supporters' Shield, with both the Galaxy and D.C. achieving this double twice. By contrast, when the Houston Dynamo have made it to the MLS Cup thousands of fans have traveled to Dallas, Washington D.C., and to Los Angeles twice. In 1997, soccer fan Nick Lawrus on a listserv proposed the notion of a "Supporters' Scudetto", as a result of the Tampa Bay Mutiny earning the best regular season record but failing to win the 1996 MLS Cup Final. Kick off from Historic Crew Stadium is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. The club with the best regular season record received nothing more than the top seed in the playoffs. From the major individual awards to the Supporters' Shield and MLS Cup, here's who they see collecting the hardware on offer this season. [1][2], The following year, another group led by soccer enthusiast Sam Pierron tried to revive the idea by giving an award to the regular season champions. In February 2006, USSF decided that the Supporters' Shield winner and the MLS Cup winner would represent the United States in the CONCACAF Champions League, formerly the CONCACAF Champions' Cup. 2021 MLS Trophies Predictions Supporters’ Shield: LAFC MLS Cup: Portland over Columbus. Latif Blessing and Mark-Anthony Kaye offer immense … There weren’t thousands of fans travelling for the final regular season that decided the winners of the Shield, and in the end that’s who really decides which championship is more important. Others however, saw FC Dallas as the favorites for the match, as they had finished the regular season with only four losses, and knocked off the Supporters Shield winners, Los Angeles Galaxy, in stunning fashion. With Charlotte FC forming its first official team. It echoes the practice of the top European leagues in which the team with the best record is the champion. I think that the shield is as important as the MLS cup (shield = MLS cup). All you have to do is ask the New York Red Bull fans that shed a few tears and found no solace in their Supporters’ Shield. Read on for the odds, preview and best bets for this pair of MLS playoff games. ET. 2019 finalist Toronto FC starts bid for a fourth MLS Cup final appearance in five years against Nashville. Both the MLS Cup champion and Supporters' Shield winner qualify for the CONCACAF Champions League, contested by the champions of CONCACAF leagues in North America, Central America, and the Caribbean. However, as a Canadian team, Toronto FC qualified for the tournament by winning the Canadian Championship and not the Supporters' Shield. In an official announcement, the Supporters' Shield Foundation stated, "After much consideration and discussion, the Supporters' Shield Foundation has decided to forego awarding the Supporters' Shield for the 2020 season. All you have to do is ask the New York Red Bull fans that shed a few tears and found no solace in their Supporters’ Shield. "[9], This decision caused a great amount of backlash from the MLS community, and was criticized by several members of MLS clubs, including Toronto FC head coach Greg Vanney (whose team was top of the Supporters' Shield standings at the time of the decision). Why winning the MLS Supporters’ Shield is overrated, and how it can be so much more Drew Farmer October 18, 2015 Leagues: Major League Soccer 10 Comments Only six times in Major League Soccer’s previous 19 seasons has a Supporters’ Shield winner won the MLS Cup. It seems as if every single season there is an ongoing debate on whether the Supporters’ Shield means more than the MLS Cup. Supporters’ Shield winner Philadelphia Union begins playoff quest against New England Revolution. Some have called the Crew’s roster the best ever constructed going into an MLS season Viewed from top to bottom, it’s not hard to see why. FiveThirtyEight has put out its latest projections for the MLS season, and their favorite to win MLS Cup might come as a surprise. Decision day in MLS brought solid excitement and a new Supporters' Shield winners, the Philadelphia Union. When the Champions Cup became the CONCACAF Champions League, the United States Soccer Federation gave the Supporters' Shield winner and the MLS Cup winner both direct Group stage spots into the tournament. Most regular season champions to earn berths into CONCACAF competitions typically earned them from earning a berth into the MLS Cup, or earning a berth due to the number of berths allocated to the United States for MLS. The new shield weighs 35 pounds (16 kg) and is made of sterling silver and stainless steel. Throughout the early to mid-2000s, the Shield received little praise or recognition from MLS or the general public,[citation needed] as the league awarded the MLS Cup winner and runner-up with spots in continental tournaments. Second, will Seattle start next season with an extra star above their crest, the star that represents a league championship? Most Valuable Player Now here’s where the issue arises, which championship means more? Now, I’m going to make a few points why I don’t honestly believe that he thinks this and is either running a great public relations scheme or trying to ease pressure off of himself and the rest of the team as they enter the MLS Cup playoffs. Olivier Mbaizo, left, battles for the ball against Lucas Zelarayan during the Union's game at the Columbus Crew last November 1. Here are my reasons: To win more games than anyone in the season shows you how amazing the team is. In six of the last nine Major League Soccer seasons, Colorado Rapids have failed to reach the playoffs. Auch wenn es sich um eine inoffizielle Ehrung handelt, wird das Supporters' Shield von der … [10] Following these negative responses, on October 23 the Supporters' Shield Foundation announced they had reversed their original decision, and the Shield was reinstated for the 2020 season.[11]. The Supporters' Shield is probably the fairest way to crown the MLS champion, but there's little hope of that formally ever being the case. The Cup is the goal, the Shield is positioned as a trophy a level below MLS Cup. [1] Since MLS refused to fund the idea, Pierron began fundraising to purchase a trophy with the help of supporters from various MLS clubs. As of the 2014 season, new rules are in place for breaking ties. The thing is that I understand why some people may not see the Shield as a viable option for the season championship, and that’s because the MLS currently has an unbalanced schedule that sees some teams facing other teams more than others. Timbers take it. The MLS Cup Champions Columbus Crew host our Supporters’ Shield winners Philadelphia Union tomorrow at 5:30 PM EST. Sporting Kansas City, winners of MLS Cup 2013, are received by President Barack Obama at the White House. However, in the 2017 season, Toronto FC managed the Canadian version of this achievement, lifting the Supporters' Shield, MLS Cup and Canadian Championship. After the regular season, the campaign culminated with the MLS Cup Playoffs, en route to the postseason championship match, the MLS Cup. This is only one in a handful of …. D.C. United and LA Galaxy, with four Supporters' Shields each, have won the most shields of any MLS team. [3][4], The process to create and purchase the Supporters' Shield was not completed until the tail end of the 1999 season. Nope, they won’t, and they’ll also not hold a parade for winning the Supporters’ Shield but will hold one if they ever win MLS Cup. This is not an easy decision to make. After Supporters' Shield, sights turn to MLS Cup Union: After securing Supporters' Shield club has eyes on MLS Cup By Matthew DeGeorge mdegeorge@21st-centurymedia.com @sportsdoctormd on Twitter The idea continued to gain traction at the then recently formed Independent Supporters Council (ISC) the following two years in Los Angeles and Portland, Oregon. That’s only because the Dynamo have already won the Cup twice in my lifetime, and I kind of want to celebrate a new type of trophy. ET. According to DeAndre Yedlin, member of the Seattle Sounders – winners of the Supporters’ Shield as of yesterday – he values it more than MLS Cup: “I honestly think the Supporters Shield is more important than an MLS Cup championship. The Crew make it back, but Portland is a team that can gel at the right time, as we saw last year in the MLS is Back tournament. Fundraising was boosted with donations from ESPN commentator Phil Schoen and MLS commissioner Doug Logan. They had won it just a couple of weeks prior, and many people from their fan base considered it a title that finally ended their championship drought. First of all, if this championship is more important, does that mean they won’t go all out for the MLS Cup? [13], Annual award given to the Major League Soccer team with the best regular season record, Toronto FC participated in the 2018 CONCACAF Champions League by virtue of their, Due to the restructuring of the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League, the United States' berths were allocated to the 2017 and 2018 MLS Cup winners and the 2017 and 2018, List of American and Canadian soccer champions, "From internet message board to valued prize: How the Supporters' Shield got its start", "Jeepers, Some Wishes Really Do Come True! It often times seems like only the winners of the Supporters’ Shield tend to argue the loudest about how much more important it is than MLS Cup, but when it comes down to it, if they don’t win the MLS Cup they’ll be more disappointed than they’ll let on. After a play-in round win over Montreal and a first-round upset over Supporters’ Shield winners Philadelphia, the eighth-seeded New England Revolution travel to Orlando to face the fourth-seeded Lions in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. With the inability for supporters to be in attendance and fill their stadiums with passion, however, we feel as though the current climate goes against the spirit of the Shield. The way this season worked out, the winner of that match would clinch, so it was as close to a final as the Supporters’ Shield can experience. Your favorite teams, topics, and players all on your favorite mobile devices. [8] Build your custom FanSided Daily email newsletter with news and analysis on Houston Dynamo and all your favorite sports teams, TV shows, and more. One year the Fusion supporters group briefly refused to let go of the trophy. Although D.C. United were the first MLS club to win the award, the first-place finishes between 1996 and 1998 have all been awarded the honor retroactively, with their names included on the shield at the time of its creation.[5]. Links: Backe Considers Shield more important MLS cup vs Supporter's Shield Does the Supporter's Shield create more interest Finally, there is one link that I think sums up all of the arguments. 5 Reasons Colorado Rapids are MLS Supporters’ Shield contenders. Cup: The MLS Cup winners are regarded as the United States Major League Soccer Champions of the season after undergoing the season playoffs. When Houston finally scored in extra time, people around me were in tears, frustrated, and cursing quite profoundly. Last year, when I was in New York for the Houston Dynamo vs. New York Red Bulls Eastern Conference semi-final second leg, New York were the current holders of the Supporters’ Shield. D.C. United and the New York Red Bulls hold the record for the earliest exit in a CONCACAF competition as the Shield winners, being eliminated from the group stage in the 2008–09 and 2014–15 editions of the Champions League, respectively. With the fund raising complete, in early 2013 the new Supporter's Shield was created. Reigning Supporters' Shield winners Union take on reigning MLS Cup champs Crew in MLS Season kickoff - PHILLY SPORTS NETWORK. Kick off Historic Crew Stadium is set for 5:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast nationally on FS1 and Fox Deportes. However, one thing that I noticed when in the stands was that as soon as the Dynamo scored and tied the game up to push the series towards extra time, everybody was talking about their title hopes fleeting due to the Curse of the Caricola. The Supporters' Shield is an annual award given to the Major League Soccer team with the best regular season record, as determined by the MLS points system. Until this day Major League Soccer still advertises the MLS Cup over any other game in the league with probably the exception of the All-Star game. In 2011, the league announced that the Shield winner's opponent in the MLS Cup quarterfinals would be the lowest-seeded team remaining. The Black & Gold don’t get an easy competitor coming to historic Crew Stadium to start the new Major League Soccer season in last year’s Supporters’ Shield winners, the Philadelphia Union.. Philadelphia Union are the 2020 holders of the Supporters' Shield, winning it for the first time. At the very least, there are ways to improve the playoffs. The club with the best regular season record received nothing more than the top seed in the playoffs. I like to make my MLS Cup pick a little out of the ordinary. Here's a short taste, you can read more of … However, that’s my personal preference and it wouldn’t be the case if we hadn’t already won the Cup. Individual award winners. In terms of the best team, this is the best team over a full season.”. For the first time in Major League Soccer's 26 years, the reigning Supporters' Shield and MLS Cup winners are facing off on a regular season's opening weekend. This isn’t far from the realm of possibility (and it’s a rerun of the 2015 Cup, actually). Why you may ask? This means that the path to the MLS Cup has to go through Philadelphia after they secured the Supporters’ Shield, their first title in their history. [4], On October 17, 2020, Major League Soccer announced that, following a decision made by the ISC, the Supporters' Shield would not be awarded at the end of the 2020 regular season, largely in part due to the effects that the COVID-19 pandemic had had on the league. On seven occasions (1997, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2008, 2011 and 2017) the winner of the Supporters' Shield also won the MLS Cup that same year. It often times seems like only the winners of the Supporters’ Shield tend to argue the loudest about how much more important it is than MLS Cup, but when it comes down to it, if they don’t win the MLS Cup they’ll be more disappointed than they’ll let on. Sunday's loss to Columbus was just Philadelphia's second in its past eight games, but it cost the club dearly. In the end, nearly $3,000 was donated to commission the trophy, which was a chevron made by artist Paula Richardson out of sterling silver sheet metal, for $2,200. These fans didn’t look like they were a fan base that had already clinched or won a championship a couple of weeks before, they looked like a fan base that saw the MLS Cup slipping from their hands. Drew Farmer July 17, 2016 Colorado Rapids, Leagues: Major League Soccer No Comments. Major League Soccer adopted the American way instead of the European style in order to be more accommodating to casual fans in the United States. In the playoffs, at least you’re divided by conference, have games that include aggregate scores, and the MLS Cup is held among the winners of their respective conferences. Another observation is the fact that thousands of L.A. Galaxy fans didn’t travel to Seattle for the final regular season game that decided whether L.A. or Seattle would clinch the Shield. In Spain, England, Italy and most everywhere else around the World, except for nations like Mexico, Australia, and a couple of others, a champion is not decided via a playoff system but by which team ends the season with the best record. Fans will have a variety of options to view the anticipated Supporters' Shield vs. MLS Cup match up. The newly designed shield was first awarded to the New York Red Bulls on the final day of the 2013 MLS season. The Supporter's Shield Foundation was created out of the ISC meeting in Portland in 2012 with a mission to fund the creation of a new shield and to promote and manage the trophy going forward. DC United has won the Supporter's Shield 4 times, the most by any club. 2012: The Supporters’ Shield made its way to San Jose for the second time in 2012, while the Earthquakes followed it with a semifinal loss in the MLS Cup Playoffs to the Galaxy. Before 2006, Shield winners were not guaranteed a berth into CONCACAF competitions. Reigning MLS Cup and Supporters Shield winners draw 0-0 in Columbus Crew's MLS opener Jacob Myers, The Columbus Dispatch 3 hrs ago. For those of you that don’t know, the Supporters’ Shield is an award that is given to the team with the most points during the regular season. Truth is that any stat that I give you is meaningless compared to the fan base reaction I mentioned earlier. I mean, who cares if they got the important championship already, right? After the regular season, the campaign culminated with the MLS Cup Playoffs, en route to the postseason championship match, the MLS Cup. Think about it. A committee composed of members of all MLS teams' supporters changed the name to "Supporters' Shield" but, due to disagreements between members of the committee, the proposal failed to come to fruition. ", MLS announces competition changes for 2006, "Supporters' Shield will not be awarded in 2020 following decision by ISC", "Vanney rips Supporters' Shield decision", "Supporters' Shield to be awarded in 2020 following reversal of decision", "Qualifying Format Unveiled for 2008-09 CONCACAF Champions League", MLS performance in the CONCACAF Champions League, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Supporters%27_Shield&oldid=1009203295, Short description with empty Wikidata description, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2013, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Coin toss (two teams) or drawing of lots (three or more teams), This page was last edited on 27 February 2021, at 08:47. Is the title that awards a team’s full season performance, albeit a title not “officially” recognized, more meaningful than MLS Cup, a trophy that awards a hot streak at the right time? Powered by Minute Media © 2021 All Rights Reserved. Kenosha, Wisconsin, shooting: … They fell out of the Champions League in the Quarterfinals. The Colombian averaged 2.93 tackles and 2.45 blocks per 90 minutes last season and is brilliantly robust when it comes to his defensive work, while he keeps LAFC ticking with his calmness in possession and precision passing. When Major League Soccer had its inaugural season in 1996, the league resembled its contemporary North American leagues. Some analysts as early as August predicted Dallas to win the entire MLS Cup final. Fourteen different teams have won at least one Supporters' Shield, with the LA Galaxy and D.C. United level with the most wins at four each. In 2008, with the arrival of the newly formatted CONCACAF Champions League, the Shield winner, along with the MLS Cup winner both earned direct byes into the group stage of the Champions League. The outside of the shield contains a Telstar soccer ball design while the middle of the shield pays homage to the chevron design of the original trophy. As teams prepare for the final run to the playoffs, they've made one thing clear: nothing, not even the Supporters' Shield, is more important than winning MLS Cup. [7] If the Supporters Shield winner also wins the MLS Cup, the team with the second highest regular season point total qualifies as well. The following season, they finished 10th overall in the league, beginning a four-season streak of failing to make the playoffs. Eduard Atuesta is right up there among the best defensive midfielders in MLS right now, if not the best outright. Since 2007, the Shield winner replaced the MLS Cup runner-up as the second American representative for the CONCACAF Champions' Cup. Major League Soccer’s opening week concludes with a huge Eastern Conference clash as the 2020 Supporters’ Shield winners Philadelphia Union take on defending MLS Cup Champions Columbus Crew SC. Since 2006, the Supporters' Shield winner has earned a berth in the CONCACAF Champions League if they are an American-based team. Orlando now has MLS Cup odds of +430, while New England is still a lengthy +2300. The Columbus Crew officially begin the defense of the team’s MLS Cup title on Sunday. MLS Cup vs Supporters Shield well explained. The schedule now shifts to MLS, where the Crew enter the season as many experts’ pick to take home both Supporters’ Shield and to repeat as MLS Cup champions. This is obviously not the way American sports usually award championships, the NBA title doesn’t go to the team with the best record but to the team that manages to get through a few series of best of games. Email. While three teams have secured a Supporters' Shield and U.S. Open Cup double, no American team has won all three major domestic trophies (the Supporters' Shield, MLS Cup and U.S. Open Cup). The Supporters' Shield has been annually awarded at the MLS Supporters' Summit since 1999, and has been recognized as a major trophy by the league. Shield: The MLS Supporters Shield is the trophy given to the team that finished the regular season with the most points better than the rest of the teams in each conference. Yesterday New York Red Bulls coach Hans Backe sounded off on a topic I hold dear to my heart, MLS Cup vs the Supporters Shield. Most times, the United States was allocated two berths into the tournament, which went to the MLS Cup champion and runner-up. But it doesn’t because playoffs give them a chance to hype the league, try and get better tv ratings and “appeal” to the North American sports fan with a championship game. Is winning an MLS Cup in the first 3 years a realistic expectation?

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