Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional football league that consists of 16 teams from the United States and 3 teams from Canada. The championship was established in 1996 and at that time 10 teams contested the title. Despite a much-troubled start of the league in the 1990s, the early 2000s saw the MLS growing into a competitive and steadily developing tournament.
The season in MLS runs from March to December, each side plays 34 games. All teams are divided into Eastern and Western Conferences. Ten top clubs in each conference enter in MLS Cup Playoffs, competing for MLS Cup. The team that finishes atop of the league receives the Supporters' Shield. The closed structure of MLS makes it one of few national tournaments that does not use relegation and promotion rules.
Each club in MLS belongs to the league and is controlled by the league investors. The league regulates all financial aspects of a team’s existence. In the middle of the season the annual All-Star Game takes place. The match includes the team of the best players of the league and a major club from a different league.
Throughout the history of the tournament, the MLS Cup was claimed by nine different clubs, the Supporters' Shield was clinched by eight different outfits. D.C. United is the side that won 4 Cups; Los Angeles Galaxy took 3 titles, Houston Dynamo and San Jose Earthquakes celebrated 2 victories.
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