April 6 – MLS Kicks Off | On This Football Day

April 6 – MLS Kicks Off

TODAY in 1996, two years after they had hosted the World Cup America showed that they were serious about this soccer lark, as the MLS kicked off it’s debut season.

The Major Soccer League was the brainchild of Alan Rothenberg, who had sunk over $1m into short-lived NASL outfit LA Aztecs in the late 1970s, mainly on Johan Cruyff’s inflated paypacket.

To avoid the boom and bust of the doomed NASL, the new league followed the curiously socialist leanings that are evident in the NFL and NBA by introducing a salary cap, shared profits and losses and a player draft.

First pick in the draft was the few players from that first season who would make it on the international stage, as future Everton and Fulham striker Brian McBride was picked up by Columbus Crew. If anyone can fill us on what this draft’s ‘Mr Irrelevant’ – the nickname given in US sports for the player picked last, and in this case Carlos Garcia of Myrtle Beach Boyz – is up to, please let us know.

Ten teams fought it out for the inaugural MLS Cup, with 31,683 watching today’s opening match and seeing San Jose Clash defeating DC United 1-0, with Eric Wynalda securing his place in the record books with the league’s first ever goal.

DC United, coached by former USA boss and current LA Galaxy gaffer Bruce Arena, had the last laugh though, as they would win the MLS Cup and US Open Cup double. Arena would then inspire United to win the MLS Cup in three of the first four seasons, but the league would suffer from a fall in attendance, especially after the US national team flopped at the 1998 World Cup.

The league has bounced back though, with help from the USA’s quarter-final showing in the 2002 World Cup and the hyped-up debut of a 14-year-old Freddy Adu in 2004. Oh, and some bloke that’s married to a Spice Girl gave it a bit of exposure a couple of years ago, before realising he could still mix it with the big boys in Europe.

See clips of the some of the league’s stars from the last 13 years below and see what else was going on today by clicking here. We’ll be back tomorrow for some more of the same, so don’t go changing.