Deloitte Study Suggests U.S. Soccer Could Benefit from Promotion/Relegation

Whenever the topic of promotion and relegation gets brought up in the American soccer community, a long and heated debate takes place. The latest addition to the conversation comes from a Deloitte study commissioned by Silva International Investments. "What we're hoping is that the report and the analysis become part of the debate straight away," Deloitte's head of Sport Business Group Dan Jones said in a phone conversation with Bleacher Report. "And that debate needs to take place on the philosophical and strategic level of is promotion/relegation something that is felt to be desirable for soccer in the United States." The study states the American soccer pyramid would be able to sustain an open-league system, but it puts no specific timetable on when it should occur. "We quite deliberately haven't put timelines on this because I don't think it's our place to do so," Jones said. "I think there would definitely be a lot of detail to be worked through, so it's certainly not in any sense a prudent thing to do and flick the switch overnight and say we're going to go from a closed-league system to an open-league system. "What the report hopes to do is be a thoughtful contribution to that debate ...

Previewing the 1st Leg of the MLS Conference Finals

After a long layoff of 16 days, the Major League Soccer playoffs will resume on Tuesday with the first leg of the Eastern and Western Conference finals.  The opening match of the doubleheader will be played inside the Olympic Stadium in Montreal between Canadian rivals Montreal Impact and Toronto FC.  The second contest features the best defensive team in MLS, the Colorado Rapids, against the dynamic Seattle Sounders led by attacking midfielder Nicolas Lodeiro. The major plot twist in the Western Conference final is the appearance of Zac MacMath in the Colorado net after Tim Howard suffered an injury on duty with the United States men's national team.  Below is a preview of both of Tuesday's contests in the MLS Cup play-offs.              Toronto FC at Montreal Impact (Tuesday, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN)  The Eastern Conference final is the biggest moment to date for Canadian soccer in MLS. Toronto and Montreal are heated rivals in every other sport, and the two-legged showdown with a spot in the MLS Cup final on the line will bring a new element to the clash of prominent sports towns.  "Each time we play these games they're more meaningful than the last," Toronto FC manager Greg Vanney said. "This ...

MLS Player Rankings: Toronto Trio Take Up Top Spots After Dominant Showings

Toronto FC's designated players dominated the second leg of the Eastern Conference semifinal against New York City FC on Sunday. Sebastian Giovinco, Jozy Altidore and Michael Bradley all made significant contributions to push the Reds into the Eastern Conference final.  The trio of high-paid stars were just a few of the big names who shined during Sunday's four-game slate in which the field for the MLS Cup was cut in half to four.  Ignacio Piatti, Laurent Ciman and Tim Howard were among the other high-profile stars who shined brightest as Montreal, Colorado and Seattle joined Toronto in the conference final round that begins on November 22.  Our playoff player rankings take into account every postseason match played by each individual, with the most recent performance holding the most weight.  Continue reading to see which player from the tremendous Toronto trio secured the top spot in the Bleacher Report MLS Postseason Player Rankings after the conference semifinal round.Begin Slideshow

MLS Team of the Week: Giovinco, Piatti Power Clubs into Conference Finals

Three of the four Major League Soccer clubs that took an advantage into the second leg of the conference semi-final round on Sunday moved on to the conference final stage of the postseason. Montreal, Toronto and Seattle all put together strong performances on the road to knock off three of the best teams from the regular season. The Colorado Rapids were the lone home team to make it through to the next round. Since the other three top seeds were bounced on Sunday, the Rapids are currently in line to host MLS Cup on December 10 if they move past Seattle in the Western Conference final.  The standout individual from Sunday's play was Sebastian Giovinco. The Atomic Ant unleashed a hat-trick in Toronto's demolishing of New York City FC. Continue reading to see who joined Giovinco in our best XI from the conference semi-final second legs. Begin Slideshow

Previewing the 2nd Legs of the MLS Conference Semifinals

The home teams had their way during the first legs of the Major League Soccer conference semifinals, but that may not be the case during the quartet of second-leg showdowns on Sunday.  The L.A. Galaxy, Montreal Impact, Toronto FC and Seattle Sounders head into their Sunday road trips with key advantages in their respective series, and most importantly, none of the leading sides conceded away goals.  Colorado, FC Dallas and both New York clubs, City and the Red Bulls, have certain things they need to fix in order to secure a berth in the conference final round, especially FC Dallas, who enter Sunday with the largest deficit. Below is an in-depth look at each of Sunday's second-leg matches.        LA Galaxy at Colorado Rapids (2 p.m. ET, ESPN)  The Galaxy benefited from a fortuitous bounce on a Giovani dos Santos shot to pull ahead of the Rapids in the No. 3 vs. No. 2 matchup in the Western Conference.  Robbie Keane is still working his way back to full fitness, which means the hot combination of Alan Gordon and Dos Santos should start at Dick's Sporting Goods Park.  Gordon's physical presence up top will once again be needed to combat the height and strength of the ...

MLS Player Rankings: Mancosu, Altidore Lead After 1st Weekend of Postseason

A number of unexpected heroes appeared during the first week of the Major League Soccer playoffs.  The L.A. Galaxy, Seattle Sounders and Montreal Impact received significant contributions from a few players who were dormant in front of the net for long stretches of the regular season.  In addition to the unlikely stars of the week, a few of the league's big names continued their impressive seasons with strong performances for their respective sides.  Our postseason player rankings take into account showings from both the knockout round and Sunday's first legs of the conference semifinal round. We also trimmed our list to 10 for the postseason due to the smaller sample size we have to choose from. Continue reading to see who topped the first MLS Player Rankings of the postseason. Begin Slideshow

MLS Team of the Week: Altidore and Valdez Dazzle in Postseason

The home teams were thoroughly dominant during the opening two rounds of the Major League Soccer postseason.  Three of the four home sides advanced out of the knockout round by a combined score of 9-6. Only the Montreal Impact were able to pull out a result on the road.  The results were even more lopsided on Sunday as Montreal, LA, Toronto and Seattle outscored their opponents 7-0 on home soil in the first leg of the conference semi-finals.  Seattle, led by unexpected hero Nelson Valdez, came closest to securing a spot in the next round, as they defeated FC Dallas 3-0 at CenturyLink Field.  We considered performances from both the knockout round and first leg of the conference semi-final round for our MLS Team of the Week. Continue reading to see who fit into our best XI from the first week of the MLS play-offs. Begin Slideshow

Previewing the 1st Leg of the MLS Conference Semifinals

The conference semifinal stage of the MLS Cup Playoffs begins on Sunday with four first-leg contests between the eight remaining sides in the competition.  New York Red Bulls and New York City FC will head to Canada to face Montreal Impact and Toronto FC respectively in the Eastern Conference.  FC Dallas visit the Seattle Sounders and the L.A. Galaxy host the Colorado Rapids in the two Western Conference showdowns on Sunday.  Below we took a look at each of the individual matchups and what each team needs to do to take an upper hand into the second leg.        New York Red Bulls at Montreal Impact  Plenty of people will point to the other Eastern Conference semifinal as the one with the most attacking firepower, but the matchup between the Red Bulls and Impact carries three of the front-runners for the Most Valuable Player award.  Bradley Wright-Phillips earned his second MLS Golden Boot in three years with 24 regular-season goals, while teammate Sacha Kljestan led the league in assists, with 19.  The pair of Red Bulls playmakers are surrounded by plenty of experience with Dax McCarty, Felipe and Mike Grella a part of the midfield setup. Academy product Alex Muyl may be the most impressive player ...

MLS Player Rankings: Golden Boot Winner BWP Ends Regular Season on Top

In a league in which parity and competition reign supreme, one player has been able to dominate the headlines since the middle of the summer.  Bradley Wright-Phillips of the New York Red Bulls won his second Golden Boot in three years behind one of the best scoring runs in league history.  The scorer of 24 goals is once again the top man in our Bleacher Report MLS Player Rankings. The Englishman faced stiff competition from David Villa, Jozy Altidore, Ignacio Piatti and teammate Sacha Kljestan for the top spot, but none of them could keep up with him every week.  Our player rankings take into account the last four performances from a specific player, with the most recent one holding more value. Continue reading to see who landed where beneath Wright-Phillips in the final Bleacher Report MLS Player Rankings of the regular season.Begin Slideshow

MLS Team of the Week: Kaka, Molino, Giovinco Impress on Decision Day

The final day of the Major League Soccer regular season was supposed to hand us 90 minutes of drama-filled action with playoff berths on the line.  However, instead of the final playoff positions being determined late on, they were sealed long before the final whistle thanks to a few spoilers.  The Vancouver Whitecaps were the biggest spoiler on Sunday as they trounced Portland. Two of the other impressive showings on Decision Day came out of eliminated sides Orlando City and New England.  Due to the offensive outburst on Decision Day, we aligned our team selection in a 3-4-3 formation. Continue reading to see who was named to the season's final Bleacher Report MLS Team of the Week.Begin Slideshow