2001 Major League Soccer season

The 2001 Major League Soccer season was the sixth season of Major League Soccer. It was also the 89th season of FIFA-sanctioned soccer in the United States, and the 23rd with a national first-division league.

2001 Major League Soccer season
Season2001
MLS CupSan Jose Earthquakes (1st title)
Supporters' ShieldMiami Fusion (1st shield)
2002 CONCACAF Champions' CupSan Jose Earthquakes
Matches played158
Goals scored519 (3.28 per match)
Top goalscorerAlex Pineda Chacon
Miami Fusion F.C.
Goals: 19
Highest attendanceD.C. United
Season: 258,213
Game Avg.: 21,518
Lowest attendanceSan Jose Earthquakes
Season: 125,250
Game Avg.: 9,635
Total attendance2,363,859
Average attendance14,961
← 2000
2002 →
Locations of teams for the 2001 Major League Soccer season
Western Division   Central Division   Eastern Division

The season was shortened due to the September 11 attacks, with the final weeks' regular season matches being canceled. Due to the different number of games played, playoff ordering was determined by points per game, instead of total points.[1]

The regular season began on April 7, and concluded prematurely on September 9. The 2001 MLS Cup Playoffs began on September 20, and concluded with MLS Cup 2001 on October 21. The Miami Fusion won their first Supporters' Shield and the San Jose Earthquakes defeated the Los Angeles Galaxy in the final to win their first MLS Cup.

Overview

Season format

The season began on April 7 and concluded with MLS Cup on October 21. The 12 teams were split into three divisions. Each team played 32 games that were evenly divided between home and away. Each team played every other team in their division four times, for a total of 12 games. The remaining schedule consisted of three games against four select opponents in one of the other divisions, and two games against the remaining four teams.

The eight teams with the most points per game qualified for the MLS Cup Playoffs. The quarterfinals and semifinals were played as a best-of-three series, and the winners advanced to MLS Cup. In all rounds, draws were broken by penalty shootout if necessary. The away goals rule was not used in any round.

The team with the most points in the regular season was awarded the MLS Supporters' Shield. The winner of MLS Cup, and the runner-up, qualified for the CONCACAF Champions' Cup.

Stadiums and locations
Main article: List of Major League Soccer stadiums
Team Stadium Capacity
Chicago Fire Soldier Field 66,944
Colorado Rapids Mile High Stadium 76,273
Columbus Crew Columbus Crew Stadium 22,555
D.C. United RFK Stadium 46,000
Dallas Burn Cotton Bowl 92,100
Kansas City Wizards Arrowhead Stadium 81,425
Los Angeles Galaxy Rose Bowl 92,542
Miami Fusion Lockhart Stadium 20,450
New England Revolution Foxboro Stadium 60,292
MetroStars Giants Stadium 80,200
San Jose Earthquakes Spartan Stadium 30,456
Tampa Bay Mutiny Raymond James Stadium 69,218

Personnel and sponsorships
Team Head coach Captain Shirt sponsor
Chicago Fire Bob Bradley —
Colorado Rapids Tim Hankinson
Columbus Crew Tom Fitzgerald —
D.C. United Thomas Rongen MasterCard
Dallas Burn Mike Jeffries
Kansas City Wizards Bob Gansler —
Los Angeles Galaxy Sigi Schmid —
MetroStars Octavio Zambrano Tab Ramos
Miami Fusion Ray Hudson —
New England Revolution Fernando Clavijo —
San Jose Earthquakes Frank Yallop Jeff Agoos Yahoo! Sports
Tampa Bay Mutiny Alfonso Mondelo

Coaching changes
TeamOutgoing coachManner of departureDate of vacancyIncoming coachDate of appointment
Columbus Crew Tom Fitzgerald Fired May 17, 2001 Greg Andrulis May 17, 2001
Tampa Bay Mutiny Alfonso Mondelo Resigned July 5, 2001 Perry Van der Beck Jul 5, 2001

Standings

Eastern Division

Pos Team Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Miami Fusion 26 16 5 5 57 36 +21 53 MLS Cup Playoffs
2 MetroStars 26 13 10 3 38 35 +3 42
3 New England Revolution 27 7 14 6 35 52 −17 27
4 D.C. United 26 8 16 2 42 50 −8 26
Source: MLS

Central Division

Pos Team Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Chicago Fire 27 16 6 5 50 30 +20 53 MLS Cup Playoffs
2 Columbus Crew 26 13 7 6 49 36 +13 45
3 Dallas Burn 26 10 11 5 48 47 +1 35
4 Tampa Bay Mutiny 27 4 21 2 32 68 −36 14
Source: MLS

Western Division

Pos Team Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Los Angeles Galaxy 26 14 7 5 52 36 +16 47 MLS Cup Playoffs
2 San Jose Earthquakes 26 13 7 6 47 29 +18 45
3 Kansas City Wizards 27 11 13 3 33 53 −20 36
4 Colorado Rapids 26 5 13 8 36 47 −11 23
Source: MLS

Overall standings

Pos Team Pld W L T GF GA GD Pts PPG Qualification
1 Miami Fusion (S) 26 16 5 5 57 36 +21 53 2.04 CONCACAF Champions' Cup
2 Chicago Fire 27 16 6 5 50 30 +20 53 1.96
3 Los Angeles Galaxy 26 14 7 5 52 36 +16 47 1.81
4 Columbus Crew 26 13 7 6 49 36 +13 45 1.73
5 San Jose Earthquakes (C) 26 13 7 6 47 29 +18 45 1.73 CONCACAF Champions' Cup
6 MetroStars 26 13 10 3 38 35 +3 42 1.62
7 Dallas Burn 26 10 11 5 48 47 +1 35 1.35
8 Kansas City Wizards 27 11 13 3 33 53 −20 36 1.33
9 New England Revolution 27 7 14 6 35 52 −17 27 1.00
10 D.C. United 26 8 16 2 42 50 −8 26 1.00
11 Colorado Rapids 26 5 13 8 36 47 −11 23 0.88
12 Tampa Bay Mutiny 27 4 21 2 32 68 −36 14 0.52
Source: MLS
Rules for classification: 1) points per game; 2) total goal differential per match played; 3) total goals scored per match played; 4) away record; 5) away goal differential; 6) total goals scored in away matches; 7) home record; 8) home goal differential; 9) total goals scored in home matches; 10) fewest disciplinary points per match played; 6) away goal differential per away match played; 11) coin toss or drawing of lots.
(C) Champion; (S) Supporters' Shield

MLS Cup Playoffs

Bracket
Quarterfinals Semifinals MLS Cup
             
2 Chicago Fire (7 Points) 2 1 2
7 Dallas Burn (1 Points) 0 1 0
2 Chicago Fire (1 Points) 1 0 1
3 Los Angeles Galaxy (ASDET)* (7 Points) 1 1* 2*
3 Los Angeles Galaxy (SDET)* (4 Points) 1 1 3*
6 MetroStars (4 Points) 1 4 2
3 Los Angeles Galaxy 1
5 San Jose Earthquakes (ASDET)* 2
1 Miami Fusion (6 Points) 2 0 2
8 Kansas City Wizards (3 Points) 0 3 1
1 Miami Fusion (3 Points) 1 0 0
5 San Jose Earthquakes (SDET)* (6 Points) 0 4 1*
4 Columbus Crew (0 Points) 1 0 x
5 San Jose Earthquakes (6 Points) 3 3 x
  • Points system
    Win = 3 Pts.
    Loss = 0 Pts.
    Draw = 1 Pt.
  • ASDET*=Added Sudden Death Extra Time (Game tie breaker)
    SDET**=Sudden Death Extra Time (Series tie breaker)
    Teams will advance at 5 points.

Quarterfinals
Dallas Burn0–2Chicago Fire
Bocanegra 40'
Whitfield 90'+
Chicago Fire1–1Dallas Burn
J. Beasley 84' Deering 27'
Cotton Bowl
Dallas, Texas
Attendance:: 17,149
Dallas Burn0–2Chicago Fire
Kovalenko 17'
Armas 55'

Chicago Fire advance 7–1 on points.

Kansas City Wizards0–2Miami Fusion
Serna 28'
Pineda Chacón 53'
Miami Fusion0–3Kansas City Wizards
Lowe 24'
McKeon 31' (pen.)
Gomez 45'+
Kansas City Wizards1–2Miami Fusion
Lowe 13' Preki 14'
Henderson 71'

Miami Fusion advance 6–3 on points.

MetroStars1–1Los Angeles Galaxy
Faria 29' Caligiuri 63'
Los Angeles Galaxy1–4MetroStars
Victorine 4' Faria 72', 80'
Chung 75'
Valencia 83'
MetroStars2–3Los Angeles Galaxy
Villegas 49', 60' Victorine 21', 33'
Frye 56'
 0–1 series (SDET) 
Cienfuegos  8'

Los Angeles Galaxy advance 1-0 in series overtime (SDET) after 4-4 tie on points.

San Jose Earthquakes3–1Columbus Crew
Donovan 5' 45'+
Lagos 31'		 Warzycha 54' (pen.)
Columbus Crew0–3San Jose Earthquakes
Lagos 9'
Cerritos 68'
Donovan 76'

San Jose Earthquakes advance 6–0 on points.

Semifinals
Los Angeles Galaxy1–1Chicago Fire
Hernández 44' Wynalda 32'
Chicago Fire0–1 (AET)Los Angeles Galaxy
Vagenas  94'
Los Angeles Galaxy2–1 (AET)Chicago Fire
Califf 44'
Cienfuegos  98' 		D. Beasley 30'

Los Angeles Galaxy advance 7–1 on points.

San Jose Earthquakes0–1Miami Fusion
Preki 53'
Miami Fusion0–4San Jose Earthquakes
Donovan 16'
Russell 57'
Lagos 69'
De Rosario 89'
San Jose Earthquakes1–0 (AET)Miami Fusion
Dayak  94'

San Jose Earthquakes advance 6–3 on points.

MLS Cup
Main article: MLS Cup 2001
Los Angeles Galaxy1–2 (AET)San Jose Earthquakes
Hernández 21' Donovan 43'
De Rosario  96'

Player statistics

Goals
RankPlayerClubGoals
1 Alex Pineda Chacón Miami Fusion 19
2 Diego Serna Miami Fusion 15
3 John Spencer Colorado Rapids 14
Abdul Thompson Conteh D.C. United
5 Ronald Cerritos San Jose Earthquakes 11
Ariel Graziani Dallas Burn
7 Jeff Cunningham Columbus Crew 10
Eric Wynalda New England Revolution,
Chicago Fire
9 Mamadou Diallo Tampa Bay Mutiny 9
Jaime Moreno D.C. United

Hat-tricks
Main article: List of Major League Soccer hat-tricks
PlayerClubAgainstResultDate
Clint MathisMetroStarsKansas City Wizards4–1May 2
Abdul Thompson Conteh4D.C. UnitedNew England Revolution5–0May 9
Mamadou Diallo4Tampa Bay MutinyLA Galaxy4–1
Diego SernaMiami FusionDallas Burn6–2June 2
Dante WashingtonColumbus CrewTampa Bay Mutiny6–1June 16
John SpencerColorado RapidsD.C. United3–1July 4
Alex Pineda ChacónMiami FusionD.C. United3–1September 8

Assists
RankPlayerClubAssists
1 Diego Serna Miami Fusion 11
John Wilmar Pérez Columbus Crew
3 Ross Paule Colorado Rapids 10
Preki Miami Fusion
5 Jeff Cunningham Columbus Crew 8
Cobi Jones Los Angeles Galaxy
Manny Lagos San Jose Earthquakes
Piotr Nowak Chicago Fire
9 Landon Donovan San Jose Earthquakes 7
Marco Etcheverry D.C. United
Ariel Graziani Dallas Burn
Eric Quill Tampa Bay Mutiny

Clean sheets
Rank Player Club Clean
sheets
1 Matt Jordan Dallas Burn 9
Zach Thornton Chicago Fire
3 Joe Cannon San Jose Earthquakes 7
4 Matt Reis Los Angeles Galaxy 6
5 Tom Presthus Columbus Crew 5
Nick Rimando Miami Fusion
7 Kevin Hartman Los Angeles Galaxy 4
Tim Howard MetroStars
Tony Meola Kansas City Wizards
10 Bo Oshoniyi Kansas City Wizards 3

Awards

Individual awards
AwardPlayerClub
Most Valuable Player Alex Pineda ChacónMiami Fusion
Defender of the Year Jeff AgoosSan Jose Earthquakes
Goalkeeper of the Year Tim HowardMetroStars
Coach of the Year Frank YallopSan Jose Earthquakes
Rookie of the Year Rodrigo FariaMetroStars
Comeback Player of the Year Troy DayakSan Jose Earthquakes
Scoring Champion Alex Pineda ChacónMiami Fusion
Fair Play Award Alex Pineda ChacónMiami Fusion
Humanitarian of the Year Tim HowardMetroStars
Goal of the Year Clint MathisMetroStars

Best XI
Goalkeeper Defenders Midfielders Forwards
Tim Howard, MetroStars Jeff Agoos, San Jose
Carlos Llamosa, Miami
Pablo Mastroeni, Miami
Greg Vanney, LA Galaxy		 Chris Armas, Chicago
Piotr Nowak, Chicago
Preki, Miami		 Alex Pineda Chacón, Miami
Diego Serna, Miami
John Spencer, Colorado

Player of the Month
WeekPlayerClub
April Alex Pineda ChacónMiami Fusion
May Clint MathisMetroStars
June Diego SernaMiami Fusion
July Hristo StoitchkovChicago Fire
August Brian MaisonneuveColumbus Crew

Attendance
Team Games Total Average
D.C. United 12 258,213 21,518
MetroStars 13 270,477 20,806
Columbus Crew 13 227,644 17,511
Los Angeles Galaxy 13 226,035 17,387
Colorado Rapids 13 214,249 16,481
Chicago Fire 14 229,438 16,388
New England Revolution 13 203,501 15,654
Dallas Burn 13 163,465 12,574
Miami Fusion 14 156,481 11,177
Kansas City Wizards 13 142,402 10,954
Tampa Bay Mutiny 14 146,704 10,479
San Jose Earthquakes 13 125,250 9,635
Totals 158 2,363,859 14,961

International Competition

CONCACAF Champions' Cup

Copa Merconorte

CONCACAF Giants Cup

References
  1. "MLS Teleconference: September 13, 2001". MLSNET. Archived from the original on February 11, 2002. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
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