Many sports sites use "Power Rankings", and as they are always based on the opinions of their authors there is a wide range between ranks for teams. Some are near-mirrors of the league standings, while others are closer to a reflection of a team's current form. One recent Power Ranking author made the best quote I have read to date for how to interpret a league's Power Ranking:



"If two teams played tomorrow, given their current injury concerns, form, and other considerations, who is likely to win on a neutral field? This list is designed to tell you who we feel is most likely to win that matchup. All things being equal, who is the best team going forward, based on what we know now?" -Richard Farley, NBC Sports ProSoccerTalk. 3/11/14

Based on that I bring you the Power Ranking Averages for MLS Week 1.

Sites Used:

Soccer America (www.socceramerica.com)

Major League Soccer (www.mlssoccer.com)

Soccer by Ives (www.soccerbyives.net)

ESPN (espn.go.com/sports/soccer/mls)

ProSoccerTalk (prosoccertalk.nbcsports.com)

Sports Illustrated (soccer.si.com)

Fansided-MLS Multiplex (fansided.com/category/soccer/mls/mls-multiplex)

Allvoices (www.allvoices.com/users/zacwassink)

Seattle Times Blog (blogs.seattletimes.com/soundersfc)

Several sites from previous years have apparently stopped their rankings, if they do continue I will include them in relevant weeks (Goal.com, BleacherReport, Fox Sports).

If you know of a Power Ranking site that I have not included, please send it to me via this site and I will consider using it.

Weekly Power Ranking Averages



High / Low Variance

This is a reflection of how similar sites are at ranking teams. After only one week there is obviously a lot of Hi/Low variance, this will level out as more games are played.

1 position: DCU

2 positions: RSL

3 positions: MI

5 positions: SS, SJE, CF

6 positions: PT, HD

7 positions: PU

8 positions: CR

9 positions: FCD, TFC, NER

10+ positions: LAG, CC, SKC, VWC, NYRB, CUSA



Season Average Power Ranking