MLS: Best XI, expansion outlook, playoff format, MVP hint, roster size, reserve division, other notes

By Steve Goff

MLS Best XI

Goalkeeper: Donovan Ricketts, Los Angeles.

Defenders: Jamison Olave, Real Salt Lake; Omar Gonzalez, Los Angeles; Nat Borchers, Real Salt Lake.

Midfielders: David Ferreira, Dallas; Dwayne De Rosario, Toronto; Sebastien Le Toux, Philadelphia; Javier Morales, Real Salt Lake; Landon Donovan, Los Angeles.

Forwards: Edson Buddle, Los Angeles; Chris Wondolowski, San Jose.

Donovan was on the ballot as a forward. According to MLS Commissioner Don Garber, the league felt Donovan belonged on the Best XI, so after the votes were counted, the league placed him on the final list as a midfielder. It's unclear who was bumped off (the player who received the fifth-most votes among midfielders).

Garber: "Due to the large number of votes that he received, and the fact that he was on the Galaxy lineup as a midfielder nearly twice as many times as he was a forward, he was included as a midfielder [on the Best XI]. We needed to do the right thing."

For much more.....



*There is a possibility that the 2011 MLS Cup will be hosted by the highest-remaining seed. "At some point we will be ready for it, the question is whether we will be ready for it next year," Garber said. Issues include short-term ticket sales and marketing, and other logistical issues. The 2011 final is set for Sunday, Nov. 20.

*While answering a question about MLS Cup and the lack of marquee players that, for example, a Los Angeles-New York final would have offered, Garber was ready to say that one of the participants (Dallas midfielder David Ferreira) is the league MVP. He caught himself, stumbled and laughed. The official announcement won't be made until Friday. Congrats, David.

*Roster sizes will increase to 30. The final six slots are for players under age 25 who don't count against the salary cap. In a related move, the reserve division is back: three six-team divisions, 10 matches per club, eight participating in the playoffs. Players must be on the full-time roster, from the youth academy or on trial, which eliminates the previous embarrassment of equipment managers filling out the game-day roster.

*MLS is working with the USSF to create a development task force on officiating.

*The salary cap is $2.67 million per club. This season, it was $2.55 million.

*Under consideration: MLS teams advancing to the CONCACAF Champions League semifinals would receive salary cap flexibility.

*The MLS competition committee has recommended lifting the four-player limit per club for homegrown players (youth academy) and allowing unlimited signings. Homegrown players do not count against a team's salary cap.

*Each club will play 34 regular season matches, an increase from 30, but the league is still discussing conference affiliation and whether to have a home-and-home format or an unbalanced schedule to enhance rivalries. The playoff format and number of participants is still a work in progress, as well, but the playoffs themselves are not going away.

"We will never do away with playoffs," Garber said. "There is absolutely no reason to do that. I know that it exists in other soccer leagues, though not all. All have been around for hundreds of years, all that don't have the [sports] competition that we have. We will always have playoffs. The question is: Do we have playoffs that are constructed differently that might perhaps be more international in their structure? Do we add games? Do we make the playoffs longer? All of these things are going to be considered."

*New York is at the top of the list for expansion for a 20th team as soon as 2013, Garber said. "The Red Bulls are very supportive of it; they believe a local rival will add even more passion for the sport and this league in this market. There are 13-plus million people in this city, and there's more enough for two teams, particularly if one is in New York and one is based over the river in New Jersey. I am not at all concerned about saturation."

Asked about expanding elsewhere instead of adding a second club in the New York area, he said: "We are very focused on local rivalries being a key driver in growing our clubs' relevance, and by growing local relevance, we believe that can translate into national relevance. The phenomenon in the Pacific Northwest is something we never could have dreamed of. ... Rivalries really do matter. While we have been very focused on broadening our footprint, we do believe we need to have more rivalries and that second team in New York will help us do that.

"That being said, I can't imagine this will be a league, when all is said and done, that does not have teams in the South, certainly south of Washington. It's inconceivable we won't have teams at some point, whether it's in Atlanta or Florida, we have to. The only question is when that will be."

On expanding beyond 20 teams in the distant future:

"I don't know when it will be that we go beyond 20 [clubs] but at some point in our lifetime, there will be more than 20 teams in MLS. We've got a long way to go before we consider that. We'll work hard with New York, but we are still talking to people in Atlanta, we've had people in Florida reach out to us, fans in Miami continue to inundate me with e-mails -- I appreciate that. We've had interest in Orlando and Tampa, San Diego."

