Editing Major League Soccer (section)

===Establishment and shootout era===
In 1988, in exchange for FIFA awarding the right to host the [[1994 FIFA World Cup|1994 World Cup]], [[U.S. Soccer Federation|U.S. Soccer]] promised to establish a Division 1 professional soccer league.<ref name="leagle.com">{{Cite web |title=FRASER v. MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER |url=http://www.leagle.com/decision/200022797FSupp2d130_1215 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222131955/http://www.leagle.com/decision/200022797FSupp2d130_1215 |archive-date=February 22, 2014 |access-date=September 20, 2014}}</ref> In 1993, U.S. Soccer selected Major League Professional Soccer (the precursor to MLS) as the exclusive Division 1 professional soccer league.<ref name="leagle.com" /> Major League Soccer was officially formed in February 1995 as a [[limited liability company]].<ref name="leagle.com" />

[[Tab Ramos]] was the first player signed by MLS, on January 3, 1995, and was assigned to the [[New York Red Bulls|New York/New Jersey MetroStars]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=First MLS player in league history: US soccer legend Tab Ramos |url=https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2020/01/03/first-mls-player-league-history-us-soccer-legend-tab-ramos |date=January 3, 2020 |website=MLSsoccer.com |access-date=February 29, 2020 |archive-date=February 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200229232819/https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2020/01/03/first-mls-player-league-history-us-soccer-legend-tab-ramos |url-status=live }}</ref> MLS began play in [[1996 Major League Soccer season|1996]] with ten teams. The first game was held on April 6, 1996, as the [[San Jose Earthquakes|San Jose Clash]] defeated [[D.C. United]] in front of 31,000 fans at [[CEFCU Stadium|Spartan Stadium]] in San Jose in a game broadcast on ESPN.<ref>{{Cite web |title=MLS kicks off to festive crowd, mixed on-field reviews |url=http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Daily/Issues/1996/04/9/Leagues-Governing-Bodies/MLS-KICKS-OFF-TO-FESTIVE-CROWD-MIXED-ON-FIELD-REVIEWS.aspx?hl=MLS&sc=0 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150403003646/http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Daily/Issues/1996/04/9/Leagues-Governing-Bodies/MLS-KICKS-OFF-TO-FESTIVE-CROWD-MIXED-ON-FIELD-REVIEWS.aspx?hl=MLS&sc=0 |archive-date=April 3, 2015 |access-date=September 20, 2014}}</ref> The league had generated some buzz by managing to lure some marquee players from the 1994 World Cup to play in MLS—including U.S. stars such as [[Alexi Lalas]], [[Tony Meola]] and [[Eric Wynalda]], and foreign players such as Mexico's [[Jorge Campos]] and Colombia's [[Carlos Valderrama]].<ref>"19 Teams with 1 Goal: A Spotlight on Major League Soccer", June 10, 2014.</ref>
D.C. United won the [[MLS Cup]] in three of the league's first four seasons.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Trophy Case |url=http://www.dcunited.com/club/trophy-case |date=May 19, 2011 |website=D.C. United |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170622185524/https://www.dcunited.com/club/trophy-case |archive-date=June 22, 2017 |access-date=September 20, 2014 }}</ref> The league added its first two expansion teams in [[1998 Major League Soccer season|1998]]—the [[Miami Fusion]] and the [[Chicago Fire Soccer Club|Chicago Fire]]; the Chicago Fire won its first title in its inaugural season.<ref name="Last Word On Sports">{{Cite web |title=MLS 3.0 Series: A History of MLS 1.0 |url=http://lastwordonsports.com/2014/07/25/mls-3-0-series-history-mls-1-0/ |date=July 25, 2014 |website=Last Word on Sports |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140808045941/http://lastwordonsports.com/2014/07/25/mls-3-0-series-history-mls-1-0/ |archive-date=August 8, 2014 |access-date=September 20, 2014}}</ref>

After its first season, MLS suffered from a decline in attendance.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Resurgence and Expansion of the MLS |url=https://sites.duke.edu/wcwp/world-cup-2014/usa-soccer-and-world-cup-2014/resurgence-and-expansion-of-the-mls/ |date=November 25, 2013 |website=Soccer Politics / The Politics of Football |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141209173530/https://sites.duke.edu/wcwp/world-cup-2014/usa-soccer-and-world-cup-2014/resurgence-and-expansion-of-the-mls/ |archive-date=December 9, 2014 |access-date=September 20, 2014 }}</ref> The league's low attendance was all the more apparent in light of the fact that eight of the original ten teams played in large [[American football]] stadiums.<ref name="Last Word On Sports" />
One aspect that had alienated fans was that MLS experimented with rules deviations in its early years in an attempt to "Americanize" the sport. The league implemented the use of [[Penalty shootout (association football)|shootouts]] to resolve tie games. MLS also used a countdown clock and halves ended when the clock reached 0:00. The league realized that the rule changes had alienated some traditional soccer fans while failing to draw new American sports fans, and the shootout and countdown clock were eliminated after the [[1999 Major League Soccer season|1999 season]].<ref>{{Cite magazine |title=Shootout banned; TV lineup changed |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/soccer/news/1999/11/18/wednesday_teleconference/ |magazine=Sports Illustrated |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221144053/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/soccer/news/1999/11/18/wednesday_teleconference/ |archive-date=February 21, 2014 |access-date=September 20, 2014}}</ref>
The league's quality was cast into doubt when the [[United States men's national soccer team|U.S. men's national team]], which was made up largely of MLS players, finished in last place out of the 32 teams at the [[1998 FIFA World Cup|1998 World Cup]].<ref name="Last Word On Sports" />

The league lost an estimated $250&nbsp;million during its first five years, and more than $350&nbsp;million between its founding and 2004.<ref name="profit">{{Cite news |last=Holmes |first=Stanley |date=November 22, 2004 |title=Soccer: Time To Kick It Up A Notch |work=Bloomberg BusinessWeek |url=http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/04_47/b3909099.htm?campaign_id=search%20Soccer:%20Time%20To%20Kick%20It%20Up%20A%20Notch |url-status=dead |access-date=May 11, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628194808/http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/04_47/b3909099.htm?campaign_id=search%20Soccer%3A%20Time%20To%20Kick%20It%20Up%20A%20Notch |archive-date=June 28, 2011}}</ref><ref name="nytimes">{{Cite news |date=November 11, 2005 |title=For M.L.S., the Sport's Future Is in the Eye of the Beholder |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/11/sports/soccer/11soccer.html |url-status=live |access-date=January 23, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131220211629/http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/11/sports/soccer/11soccer.html |archive-date=December 20, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=MLS fans in several cities wait nervously for contraction decision |url=http://www.soccertimes.com/wagman/2001/dec27.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924115539/http://www.soccertimes.com/wagman/2001/dec27.htm |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |access-date=September 20, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=MLS considering weight-loss program |url=https://www.espn.com/soccer/s/2000/1228/977891.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131211173513/http://espn.go.com/soccer/s/2000/1228/977891.html |archive-date=December 11, 2013 |access-date=September 20, 2014}}</ref>
The league's financial problems led to Commissioner [[Doug Logan]] being replaced by [[Don Garber]], a former NFL executive, in August 1999.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mls Boots Commissioner, Turns To Nfl For Successor |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1999/08/04/mls-boots-commissioner-turns-to-nfl-for-successor/ |website=Chicago Tribune |date=August 4, 1999 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150505072549/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1999-08-04/sports/9908040033_1_nfl-international-sunil-gulati-doug-logan |archive-date=May 5, 2015 |access-date=September 20, 2014}}</ref> Following decreased attendance and increased losses by late 2001, league officials planned to fold but were able to secure new financing from owners [[Lamar Hunt]], [[Philip Anschutz]], and the [[Kraft Group|Kraft family]] to take on more teams.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Baxter |first=Kevin |date=December 5, 2015 |title=MLS goes from near extinction to remarkable success |work=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.latimes.com/sports/soccer/la-sp-soccer-baxter-20151206-story.html |access-date=August 30, 2019 |archive-date=August 31, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190831050155/https://www.latimes.com/sports/soccer/la-sp-soccer-baxter-20151206-story.html |url-status=live }}</ref> MLS announced in January 2002 that it had decided to contract the [[Tampa Bay Mutiny]] and [[Miami Fusion]], leaving the league with ten teams.<ref name="ReferenceB">{{Cite web |title=The Throw-In: Did eliminating Tampa, Miami save MLS? |url=http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2012/01/05/throw-did-eliminating-tampa-miami-save-mls |date=January 5, 2012 |website=MLSsoccer.com |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140918025920/http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2012/01/05/throw-did-eliminating-tampa-miami-save-mls |archive-date=September 18, 2014 |access-date=September 20, 2014}}</ref>

[[File:Mapfre Stadium (Columbus, Ohio) - aerial photo.jpg|thumb|Built in 1999, [[Historic Crew Stadium]] (the home of the [[Columbus Crew]] until 2021) was the first soccer-specific stadium in MLS.]]

Despite the financial problems, though, MLS did have some accomplishments that would set the stage for the league's resurgence. Columbus Crew Stadium, now known as [[Historic Crew Stadium]], was built in 1999, becoming MLS's first [[soccer-specific stadium]].<ref name="Columbus Crew history">{{Cite web |title=Columbus Crew history |url=http://www.mlssoccer.com/history/club/columbus |website=MLSsoccer.com |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141030033126/http://www.mlssoccer.com/history/club/columbus |archive-date=October 30, 2014 |access-date=September 20, 2014}}</ref> This began a trend among MLS teams to construct their own venues instead of leasing American football stadiums, where they would not be able to generate revenue from other events.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Strutner|first1=Matthew|last2=Parrish|first2=Charles|last3=Nauright|first3=John|date=2014|title=Making Soccer "Major League" in the USA and Beyond: Major League Soccer's First Decade|url=https://journals.humankinetics.com/view/journals/shr/45/1/article-p23.xml|journal=Sport History Review|volume=45|issue=1|pages=23–36|doi=10.1123/shr.2012-0017|issn=1087-1659|doi-access=free|access-date=May 2, 2020|archive-date=August 3, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803143255/https://journals.humankinetics.com/view/journals/shr/45/1/article-p23.xml|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Bell |first=Jack |date=March 23, 2002 |title=Making Big Plans to Build Stadiums, and Interest |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/23/sports/soccer-making-big-plans-to-build-stadiums-and-interest.html |work=The New York Times |accessdate=December 19, 2022 |archive-date=December 20, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221220064025/https://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/23/sports/soccer-making-big-plans-to-build-stadiums-and-interest.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2000, the league won an antitrust lawsuit, ''[[Fraser v. Major League Soccer]]'', that the players had filed in 1996. The court ruled that MLS's policy of centrally contracting players and limiting player salaries through a salary cap and other restrictions were a legal method for the league to maintain solvency and competitive parity since MLS was a single entity and therefore incapable of conspiring with itself.<ref>''[[Fraser v. Major League Soccer]]'', 97 F.Supp.2d 130 ([[United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts|D. Mass]] 2000)</ref>