| Competition: | Major League Soccer |
| Season: | 2014 |
| Mlscup: | LA Galaxy (5th title) |
| Shield: | Seattle Sounders FC (1st shield) |
| Continentalcup1: | Champions League (U.S.) |
| Continentalcup1 Qualifiers: | LA Galaxy Seattle Sounders FC D.C. United Real Salt Lake |
| Continentalcup2: | Champions League (Canada) |
| Continentalcup2 Qualifiers: | Vancouver Whitecaps FC |
| Matches: | 323 |
| Total Goals: | 924 |
| League Topscorer: | Bradley Wright-Phillips (27 goals) |
| Biggest Home Win: | LA 6–0 COL (Sept. 5) |
| Biggest Away Win: | SJ 0–5 DAL (Aug. 16) |
| Highest Scoring: | 9 goals: NY 4–5 CHI (May 11) |
| Longest Wins: | 5 matches: Seattle Sounders FC (Apr 12 – May 7) New England Revolution (Apr 26 – May 24) LA Galaxy (Aug 20 – Sept. 5) New England Revolution (Aug 23 – Sept. 13) |
| Longest Unbeaten: | 12 matches: Real Salt Lake (Mar 8 – May 24) |
| Longest Winless: | 13 matches: San Jose Earthquakes (Aug 2–present) |
| Longest Losses: | 8 matches: New England Revolution (May 31 – Jul. 26) |
| Highest Attendance: | 64,207 POR @ SEA (July 13) |
| Lowest Attendance: | 3,702 POR @ CHV (May 28) |
| Average Attendance: | 19,148[1] |
| Prevseason: | 2013 |
| Nextseason: | 2015 |
The 2014 Major League Soccer season was the 19th season of Major League Soccer. It was also the 102nd season of FIFA-sanctioned soccer in the United States, and the 36th with a national first-division league.
The regular season began on March 8 and ended on October 26. The MLS Cup Playoffs began on October 29 and ended on December 7, when the LA Galaxy claimed their fifth league title by defeating the New England Revolution, 2–1, in MLS Cup
Teams played 34 games: 17 at home and 17 away. The nine Western Conference teams faced each West club three times, with the home teams reversed from the previous year. The 10 Eastern Conference teams played 7 East teams three times (home teams reversed from 2013) and two East teams twice. Eastern and Western Conference teams played each other once, with the home team reversed from previous year.[2] 90 percent of matches were on weekends.[3] A proposal to cut the regular season to 28 matches and allow for balanced in-conference schedules was reported in the media but not adopted.[4]
See main article: List of Major League Soccer stadiums.
| Chicago Fire | Chivas USA/LA 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: 20,801 | Capacity: 22,385 | Capacity: 25,189 | Capacity: 18,500 | Capacity: 20,438 | |
| 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: 11,500 | Capacity: 67,000 | Capacity: 18,467 | Capacity: 30,000 | Capacity: 21,000 | |
Note: All teams use Adidas as kit manufacturer.
See main article: List of Major League Soccer transfers 2014. Major League Soccer employs twelve methods to acquire players. These mechanisms are the following: (a) via allocation; (b) via the Designated Player Rule; (c) via the annual SuperDraft; (d) via trade; (e) placing a discovery claim; (f) via the Homegrown Player Rule; (g) via the annual Re-Entry Draft; (h) via the annual Waiver Draft; (i) through weighted lottery; (j) through an "extreme hardship" call-up; (k) by replacing a player who has been placed on the Season Ending Injury List; (l) by replacing a player who has been placed on the Disabled List.[10]
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 2013 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 | Previous Club | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | January 27, 2014 | [11] [12] | ||||
| 2 | January 31, 2014 | [13] [14] | ||||
| 3 | Houston Dynamo∞ | July 23, 2014 | [15] [16] | |||
| 4 | October 7, 2014 | [17] | ||||
| 5 | ||||||
| 6 | [18] [19] | |||||
| 7 | ||||||
| 8 | ||||||
| 9 | ||||||
| 10 | ||||||
| 11 | ||||||
| 12 | ||||||
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| 16 | Toronto FC∞ | |||||
| 17 | ||||||
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| 19 |
On December 11, 2013, Seattle Sounders acquired the No. 2 allocation ranking from Chivas USA in exchange for the No. 13 allocation ranking and Tristan Bowen.[14]
∞ On July 23, 2014, Houston Dynamo acquired the then-no. 1 allocation ranking (original ranking number 3) and allocation money from Toronto FC in exchange for the then-no. 14 allocation ranking (original ranking number 16) and Warren Creavalle.[16]
On July 29, 2014, Los Angeles Galaxy acquired the then-No. 3 allocation ranking (original ranking number 6) from D.C. United in exchange for the then-No. 11 allocation ranking (original ranking number 14), a second-round selection in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft, and Kofi Opare.[19]
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FC Dallas |  Schellas Hyndman | Resigned | October 26, 2013 | Preseason |  Oscar Pareja | January 10, 2014 |
| Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Martin Rennie | Fired | October 29, 2013 | Carl Robinson | December 16, 2013 | |
| Chicago Fire | Frank Klopas | Resigned | October 30, 2013[20] |  | October 31, 2013[21] | |
| Columbus Crew | | End of caretaker spell | November 6, 2013 | | November 6, 2013[22] | |
| Chivas USA |  | November 25, 2013[23] | | January 9, 2014[24] | ||
| Real Salt Lake | Jason Kreis | End of contract | December 10, 2013[25] | Jeff Cassar | December 18, 2013[26] | |
| Montreal Impact | Marco Schällibaum | Fired | December 18, 2013[27] | Frank Klopas | December 18, 2013 | |
| Colorado Rapids | Oscar Pareja | Resigned | January 10, 2014 | Pablo Mastroeni | March 8, 2014[28] | |
| Philadelphia Union | John Hackworth | Fired | June 10, 2014 | 16th | Jim Curtin | June 10, 2014[29] |
| Toronto FC |  Ryan Nelsen | August 31, 2014 | 7th | Greg Vanney | August 31, 2014[30] | |
| San Jose Earthquakes | Mark Watson | October 15, 2014 | 18th | Ian Russell (interim) | October 15, 2014[31] |
The rules for the 2014 season are largely identical as those in 2013, with one major exception. For the first time in league history, the away goals rule will be used in two-legged MLS Cup playoff matches. MLS will use the version of the rule employed in CONCACAF competitions, which is applied only at the end of regular time of the second leg and not after extra time.[32] MLS has also tweaked the tiebreaker rules for the league standings. The first tiebreaker remains total wins, but the second and third tiebreakers have been swapped—goal difference is now second and goals scored is third. All other tiebreakers remain the same as in 2013.
More minor changes include the following:[32] [33]
The salary cap for 2014 has also been adjusted upward. The team salary cap, which as in previous years covers the first 20 of the 30 available roster spots, has increased to $3.1 million. The cap charge for a Designated Player is now $387,500, up from $368,750 last season. Midseason Designated Player signings carry a cap charge of $193,750. The minimum salaries for "off-budget" players (roster spots 21–30, including Generation adidas players) have also increased from last season.[33]
See main article: 2014 MLS Cup Playoffs.
| Month | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Club | Stats | ||
| March |  Mauro Díaz | FC Dallas | 2G, 1A | |
| April | Clint Dempsey | Seattle Sounders FC | 7G, 2A | |
| May | Dom Dwyer | Sporting Kansas City | 6G | |
| June | Eric Kronberg | Sporting Kansas City | 6SV, 0GA | |
| July | Benny Feilhaber | Sporting Kansas City | 2G, 1A | |
| August | Landon Donovan | LA Galaxy | 3G, 6A | |
| September |  Obafemi Martins | Seattle Sounders FC | 5G, 1A | |
| October | Lee Nguyen | New England Revolution | 5G |
| 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 | Nick Rimando | United States | Real Salt Lake | Sebastián Fernández | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Nick Rimando | United States | Real Salt Lake | ||
| Week 2 | Jermain Defoe | Toronto FC | Kyle Beckerman | United States | Real Salt Lake | Nick Rimando | United States | Real Salt Lake | ||
| Week 3 | Bernardo Añor |  Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of | Columbus Crew | Fabián Castillo | Colombia | FC Dallas | David Ousted | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | ||
| Week 4 | Graham Zusi | United States | Sporting Kansas City | Dom Dwyer | Sporting Kansas City | Dan Kennedy | United States | Chivas USA | ||
| Week 5 | Clint Dempsey | United States | Seattle Sounders FC | José Mari |  Spain | Colorado Rapids | Chris Seitz | United States | FC Dallas | |
| Week 6 | Clint Dempsey | United States | Seattle Sounders FC | Clint Dempsey | United States | Seattle Sounders FC | Chris Seitz | United States | FC Dallas | |
| Week 7 | Nick Rimando | United States | Real Salt Lake | Obafemi Martins | Nigeria | Seattle Sounders FC | Júlio César |  Brazil | Toronto FC | |
| Week 8 | Bradley Wright-Phillips | New York Red Bulls | Obafemi Martins | Nigeria | Seattle Sounders FC | Tally Hall | United States | Houston Dynamo | ||
| Week 9 | Joao Plata |  Ecuador | Real Salt Lake | Gastón Fernández | Argentina | Portland Timbers | Eric Kronberg | United States | Sporting Kansas City | |
| Week 10 | Harrison Shipp | United States | Chicago Fire | Javier Morales | Argentina | Real Salt Lake | Raúl Fernández |  Peru | FC Dallas | |
| Week 11 | Federico Higuaín | Argentina | Columbus Crew | Obafemi Martins | Nigeria | Seattle Sounders FC | Jeff Attinella | United States | Real Salt Lake | |
| Week 12 | Landon Donovan | United States | LA Galaxy | Erik Hurtado | United States | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Donovan Ricketts |  Jamaica | Portland Timbers | |
| Week 13 | Deshorn Brown | Jamaica | Colorado Rapids | Will Johnson | Canada | Portland Timbers | Jeff Attinella | United States | Real Salt Lake | |
| Week 14 | Fanendo Adi | Nigeria | Portland Timbers | Fabian Castillo | Colombia | FC Dallas | Dan Kennedy | United States | Chivas USA | |
| Week 15 | Luis Silva | United States | D.C. United | (not awarded) | (not awarded) | |||||
| Week 16 | Jack McInerney | United States | Montreal Impact | Jack McInerney | United States | Montreal Impact | David Ousted | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | ||
| Week 17 | Erick Torres | Mexico | Chivas USA | Erick Torres | Mexico | Chivas USA | Donovan Ricketts | Jamaica | Portland Timbers | |
| Week 18 | Thierry Henry |  France | New York Red Bulls | Deshorn Brown | Jamaica | Colorado Rapids | Donovan Ricketts | Jamaica | Portland Timbers | |
| Week 19 | Benny Feilhaber | United States | Sporting Kansas City | Diego Valeri | Argentina | Portland Timbers | Steve Clark | United States | Columbus Crew | |
| Week 20 | Yannick Djaló | San Jose Earthquakes | Graham Zusi | United States | Sporting Kansas City | Jaime Penedo |  Panama | LA Galaxy | ||
| Week 21 | Robbie Keane | LA Galaxy | Dax McCarty | United States | New York Red Bulls | Nick Rimando | United States | Real Salt Lake | ||
| Week 22 | Chris Schuler | United States | Real Salt Lake | Diego Valeri | Argentina | Portland Timbers | Jon Kempin | United States | Sporting Kansas City | |
| Week 23 | Tesho Akindele | Canada | FC Dallas | Dillon Serna | United States | Colorado Rapids | Jon Kempin | United States | Sporting Kansas City | |
| Week 24 | Obafemi Martins | Nigeria | Seattle Sounders FC | Obafemi Martins | Nigeria | Seattle Sounders FC | Clint Irwin | United States | Colorado Rapids | |
| Week 25 | Landon Donovan | United States | LA Galaxy | Clint Dempsey | United States | Seattle Sounders FC | Nick Rimando | United States | Real Salt Lake | |
| Week 26 | Landon Donovan | United States | LA Galaxy | Thierry Henry | France | New York Red Bulls | Jon Busch | United States | San Jose Earthquakes | |
| Week 27 | Blas Pérez | Panama | FC Dallas | Lamar Neagle | United States | Seattle Sounders FC | Joe Bendik | United States | Toronto FC | |
| Week 28 | Bradley Wright-Phillips | New York Red Bulls | Diego Valeri | Argentina | Portland Timbers | Luis Robles | United States | New York Red Bulls | ||
| Week 29 | Landon Donovan | United States | LA Galaxy | Obafemi Martins | Nigeria | Seattle Sounders FC | Steve Clark | United States | Columbus Crew | |
| Week 30 | Sebastián Fernández | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Marco Pappa | Seattle Sounders FC | Clint Irwin | United States | Colorado Rapids | |||
| Week 31 | Diego Valeri | Argentina | Portland Timbers | Graham Zusi | United States | Sporting Kansas City | Andy Gruenebaun | United States | Sporting Kansas City | |
| Week 32 | Lee Nguyen | United States | New England Revolution | Lee Nguyen | United States | New England Revolution | Nick Rimando | United States | Real Salt Lake | |
| Week 33 | Marco Pappa | Seattle Sounders FC | Kyle Beckerman | United States | Real Salt Lake | Donovan Ricketts | Jamaica | Portland Timbers | ||
