| Competition: | Major League Soccer |
| Season: | 2013 |
| Mlscup: | Sporting Kansas City (2nd title) |
| Shield: | New York Red Bulls (1st shield) |
| Continentalcup1: | Champions League (U.S.) |
| Continentalcup1 Qualifiers: | Sporting Kansas City New York Red Bulls Portland Timbers |
| Continentalcup2: | Champions League (Canada) |
| Matches: | 323 |
| Total Goals: | 845 |
| League Topscorer: | Camilo (22 goals) |
| Biggest Home Win: | NE 5–0 LA (Jun 2) MTL 5-0 HOU (Aug 24) LA 5-0 CHV (Oct 6) |
| Biggest Away Win: | CHV 0–5 POR (Oct 26) |
| Highest Scoring: | 8 goals: MTL 5-3 PHI (May 25) |
| Longest Wins: | 5 matches: Seattle Sounders FC (Aug 25 – Sep 13) |
| Longest Unbeaten: | 15 matches:[1] Portland Timbers (Mar 16 – Jun 23) |
| Longest Winless: | 13 matches: D.C. United (Mar 16 – Jun 22) |
| Longest Losses: | 7 matches: D.C. United (Mar 23 – May 11) Chivas USA (May 5 – Jun 24) |
| Highest Attendance: | 67,385 POR @ SEA (Aug 25) |
| Lowest Attendance: | 5,123 POR @ CHV (Sep 14) |
| Average Attendance: | 18,594 |
| Prevseason: | 2012 |
| Nextseason: | 2014 |
The 2013 Major League Soccer season was the 18th season of Major League Soccer. It was also the 101st season of FIFA-sanctioned soccer in the United States, and the 35th with a national first-division league.
The regular season began on March 2 and concluded on October 27. The New York Red Bulls won their first ever Supporters' Shield. The MLS Cup Playoffs began on October 31 and ended on December 7, when Sporting Kansas City won MLS Cup in a penalty shootout over Real Salt Lake. It was the third MLS Cup to be decided on penalties.
See main article: List of Major League Soccer stadiums.
| Chicago Fire | Chivas USA/Los Angeles Galaxy | Colorado Rapids | Columbus Crew | D.C. United | FC Dallas | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toyota Park | StubHub Center | Dick's Sporting Goods Park | Crew Stadium | RFK Memorial Stadium | Toyota Stadium | |
| Capacity: 20,000 | Capacity: 27,000 | Capacity: 18,086 | Capacity: 20,145 | Capacity: 19,467† | Capacity: 21,193 | |
| Houston Dynamo | Montreal Impact | New England Revolution | New York Red Bulls | Philadelphia Union | Portland Timbers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BBVA Compass Stadium | Saputo Stadium | Gillette Stadium | Red Bull Arena | PPL Park | Providence Park | |
| Capacity: 22,000 | Capacity: 20,341 | Capacity: 22,385† | Capacity: 25,189 | Capacity: 18,500 | Capacity: 20,323 | |
| Real Salt Lake | San Jose Earthquakes | Seattle Sounders FC | Sporting Kansas City | Toronto FC | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rio Tinto Stadium | Buck Shaw Stadium | CenturyLink Field | Sporting Park | BMO Field | BC Place | |
| Capacity: 20,213 | Capacity: 10,525 | Capacity: 38,500† | Capacity: 18,467 | Capacity: 21,859 | Capacity: 21,000† | |
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players and Managers may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montreal Impact |  | Mutual consent | Nov 3, 2012[2] | Preseason |  | Jan 6, 2013[3] | |
| Chivas USA | | Fired | Nov 9, 2012 [4] |  | Dec 12, 2012[5] | ||
| New York Red Bulls |  | End of contract | Nov 9, 2012[6] | | Jan 24, 2013[7] | ||
| Portland Timbers |  | End of interim period | Nov 26, 2012[8] | | Nov 26, 2012 | ||
| Toronto FC | Fired | Jan 7, 2013[9] | | Jan 7, 2013 | |||
| Chivas USA | | Mutual consent | May 30, 2013[10] | 16th | | May 30, 2013 | |
| San Jose Earthquakes |  | Mutual consent | Jun 7, 2013[11] | 15th | | Jun 7, 2013 | |
| Columbus Crew |  | Fired | Sep 2, 2013[12] | 16th | | Sep 2, 2013 | |
| FC Dallas | Schellas Hyndman | Resigned | Oct 26, 2013 | 16th / Postseason | Vacancy | Vacancy | |
| Vancouver Whitecaps | Martin Rennie | Fired | Oct 29, 2013 | 13th / Postseason | Vacancy | Vacancy | |
| Chicago Fire | Frank Klopas | Resigned | Oct 30, 2013[13] | 12th / Postseason | [14] | Oct 31, 2013 | |
| Columbus Crew | | End of interim period | Nov 6, 2013 | 16th / Postseason | [15] | Nov 6, 2013 | |
| Chivas USA | | End of interim period | Nov 25, 2013[16] | 18th / Postseason | Vacancy | Vacancy |
See main article: List of Major League Soccer transfers 2013. Major League Soccer employs 12 methods to acquire players. These include: signing players on transfers/free transfers as is done in most of the world; via trades; drafting players through mechanisms such as the MLS SuperDraft, MLS Supplemental Draft, or MLS Re-Entry Draft; rarely used methods which cover extreme hardship and injury replacement; signing players as Designated Players or Homegrown Players; placing a discovery claim on players; waivers; and methods peculiar to MLS such as through allocation or a weighted lottery.[17]
The allocation ranking is the mechanism used to determine which MLS club has first priority to acquire a U.S. National Team player who signs with MLS after playing abroad, or a former MLS player who returns to the League after having gone to a club abroad for a transfer fee. The allocation rankings may also be used in the event two or more clubs file a request for the same player on the same day. The allocations will be ranked in reverse order of finish for the 2012 season, taking playoff performance into account.
Once the club uses its allocation ranking to acquire a player, it drops to the bottom of the list. A ranking can be traded, provided that part of the compensation received in return is another club's ranking. At all times, each club is assigned one ranking. The rankings reset at the end of each MLS League season.
| Original Ranking | Club | Date Allocation Used | Player Signed | Player Nation | Previous Club | Club Nation | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | July 1, 2013 | | [18] | |||||
| 2 | ||||||||
| 3 | ||||||||
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| 16 | ||||||||
| 17 | February 20, 2013 | [19] | ||||||
| 18 | ||||||||
| 19 |
On December 12, 2012, Portland Timbers acquired the number 2 ranking from Chivas USA in exchange for the number 3 ranking and an international roster spot.[20]
On February 19, 2013, Chivas USA traded the No. 3 ranking to Seattle Sounders FC in the Shalrie Joseph trade. It was also reported that Seattle sent the No. 15 allocation ranking to Chivas USA as part of the deal, although Seattle appeared to have owned the No. 16 selection and not the No. 15 selection.[21]
On July 1, 2013, Chivas USA acquired the number 1 allocation ranking from Toronto FC in exchange for the #16 ranking, a first-round pick in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft, and an international roster spot.[22]
Some players are assigned to MLS teams via a weighted lottery process. A team can only acquire one player per year through a weighted lottery. The players made available through lotteries include: (i) Generation adidas players signed after the MLS SuperDraft; and (ii) Draft eligible players to whom an MLS contract was offered but who failed to sign with the League prior to the SuperDraft.
The team with the worst record over its last 30 regular season games (dating back to previous season if necessary and taking playoff performance into account) will have the greatest probability of winning the lottery. Teams are not required to participate in a lottery. Players are assigned via the lottery system in order to prevent a player from potentially influencing his destination club with a strategic holdout.
Below are the results of 2013 weighted lotteries:
| Lottery Date | Player | Player Nation | Position | Winning Club | Other Clubs Participating | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 18, 2012 | DF | [23] | |||||
| December 20, 2012 | DF | [24] | |||||
| January 25, 2013 | FW | [25] | |||||
| July 18, 2013 | FW | [26] |
| Club | New owner | Previous owner | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Real Salt Lake | Dell Loy Hansen | Dave Checketts | ||
| Columbus Crew | Anthony Precourt | Clark Hunt |
See main article: 2013 MLS Cup Playoffs.
| Week | MLS Player of the Week | AT&T Goal of the Week | MLS Save of the Week | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Nat | Club | Player | Nat | Club | Player | Nat | Club | ||
| Week 1 | Mike Magee | Los Angeles Galaxy | Diego Valeri | Portland Timbers | Bill Hamid | United States | D.C. United | |||
| Week 2 | Robert Earnshaw | Toronto FC | Daigo Kobayashi |  Japan | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Donovan Ricketts | Portland Timbers | |||
| Week 3 | Bill Hamid | USA | D.C. United | Rodney Wallace | Portland Timbers | Troy Perkins | USA | Montreal Impact | ||
| Week 4 | Juan Agudelo | USA | Chivas USA | Chris Wondolowski | San Jose Earthquakes | Nat Borchers | USA | Real Salt Lake | ||
| Week 5 | Will Johnson | Portland Timbers | Thierry Henry |  France | New York Red Bulls | Donovan Ricketts |  JAM | Portland Timbers | ||
| Week 6 | Ryan Johnson | Jamaica | Portland Timbers | Ryan Johnson | Jamaica | Portland Timbers | Clint Irwin | USA | Colorado Rapids | |
| Week 7 | Brad Davis | USA | Houston Dynamo | Will Johnson | Portland Timbers | Nick Rimando | USA | Real Salt Lake | ||
| Week 8 | Jack McInerney | USA | Philadelphia Union | Javier Morales |  ARG | Real Salt Lake | Donovan Ricketts | JAM | Portland Timbers | |
| Week 9 | Tim Cahill |  Australia | New York Red Bulls | Jonathan Osorio | CAN | Toronto FC | Donovan Ricketts | JAM | Portland Timbers | |
| Week 10 | Graham Zusi | USA | Sporting Kansas City | Luis Gil | USA | Real Salt Lake | Donovan Ricketts | JAM | Portland Timbers | |
| Week 11 | Will Bruin | USA | Houston Dynamo | Thierry Henry | FRA | New York Red Bulls | Kofi Sarkodie | USA | Houston Dynamo | |
| Week 12 | Eddie Johnson | USA | Seattle Sounders FC | Michel |  Brazil | FC Dallas | Nick Rimando | USA | Real Salt Lake | |
| Week 13 | Marco Di Vaio |  Italy | Montreal Impact | Rodney Wallace | CRC | Portland Timbers | Raúl Fernández |  Peru | FC Dallas | |
| Week 14 | Diego Fagúndez | New England Revolution | Robbie Findley | USA | Real Salt Lake | Nick Rimando | USA | Real Salt Lake | ||
| Week 15 | Olmes García |  Colombia | Real Salt Lake | Diego Valeri | ARG | Portland Timbers | Nick Rimando | USA | Real Salt Lake | |
| Week 16 | Kenny Miller | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Darlington Nagbe |  Liberia | Portland Timbers | Donovan Ricketts | JAM | Portland Timbers | ||
| Week 17 | Camilo | Brazil | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Will Johnson | CAN | Portland Timbers | Luis Robles | USA | New York Red Bulls | |
| Week 18 | Alan Gordon | USA | San Jose Earthquakes | Yordany Álvarez |  Cuba | Real Salt Lake | Nick Rimando | USA | Real Salt Lake | |
| Week 19 | Brad Knighton | USA | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Graham Zusi | USA | Sporting Kansas City | Raúl Fernández | PER | FC Dallas | |
| Week 20 | Camilo | BRA | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Javier Morales | ARG | Real Salt Lake | Jeff Attinella | USA | Real Salt Lake | |
| Week 21 | Chris Rolfe | USA | Chicago Fire | DeAndre Yedlin | USA | Seattle Sounders FC | Donovan Ricketts | JAM | Portland Timbers | |
| Week 22 | Álvaro Saborío | Real Salt Lake | Álvaro Saborío | CRC | Real Salt Lake | Donovan Ricketts | JAM | Portland Timbers | ||
| Week 23 | Lloyd Sam | New York Red Bulls | Cam Weaver | USA | Houston Dynamo | Nick Rimando | USA | Real Salt Lake | ||
| Week 24 | Landon Donovan | USA | Los Angeles Galaxy | Federico Higuaín | ARG | Columbus Crew | Marcus Hahnemann | USA | Seattle Sounders FC | |
| Week 25 | Robbie Keane | Los Angeles Galaxy | Giles Barnes | Houston Dynamo | Chris Wingert | USA | Real Salt Lake | |||
| Week 26 | Kelyn Rowe | USA | New England Revolution | Kelyn Rowe | USA | New England Revolution | Jaime Penedo |  Panama | Los Angeles Galaxy | |
| Week 27 | Robbie Keane | IRE | Los Angeles Galaxy | Javier Morales | ARG | Real Salt Lake | Michael Gspurning |  Austria | Seattle Sounders FC | |
| Week 28 | Marco Di Vaio | ITA | Montreal Impact | Kalif Alhassan |  Ghana | Portland Timbers | Kalif Alhassan | Ghana | Portland Timbers | |
| Week 29 | Obafemi Martins |  Nigeria | Seattle Sounders FC | Obafemi Martins | Nigeria | Seattle Sounders FC | Raúl Fernández | PER | FC Dallas | |
| Week 30 | Steven Lenhart | USA | San Jose Earthquakes | Diego Valeri | ARG | Portland Timbers | Nick Rimando | USA | Real Salt Lake | |
| Week 31 | Dominic Oduro | Ghana | Columbus Crew | Jared Jeffrey | USA | D.C. United | Jaime Penedo | PAN | Los Angeles Galaxy | |
| Week 32 | Camilo | BRA | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Camilo | BRA | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Donovan Ricketts | JAM | Portland Timbers | |
| Week 33 | Kekuta Manneh | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Kalif Alhassan | GHA | Portland Timbers | Donovan Ricketts | JAM | Portland Timbers | ||
| Week 34 | Gabriel Torres | Panama | Colorado Rapids | Tim Cahill | Australia | New York Red Bulls | Nick Rimando | USA | Real Salt Lake | |
| Week 35 | Camilo | BRA | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Diego Valeri | ARG | Portland Timbers | Nick Rimando | USA | Real Salt Lake | |
Source:[27]
| Club | Mean home attendance | |
|---|---|---|
| 44,038 | ||
| 22,152 | ||
| 20,674 | ||
| 20,603 | ||
| 20,038 | ||
| 19,923 | ||
| 19,709 | ||
| 19,461 | ||
| 19,218 | ||
| 18,131 | ||
| 17,867 | ||
| 16,080 | ||
| 15,440 | ||
| 15,373 | ||
| 15,228 | ||
| 14,844 | ||
| 13,646 | ||
| 12,765 | ||
| 8,366 |
