Sunday marked the last match day in MLS, determining who would make the playoffs and who wouldn’t, as well as which Western Conference team would take home the Supporters’ Shield and whether it would be Bradley Wright-Phillips or David Villa with the Golden Boot. In the end, it was an action packed afternoon that left some surprises and some joyous celebrations.
Playoffs were mostly set in the Eastern Conference coming into Decision Day, but the Western Conference still had a lot of question marks. With Portland dropping their final game 4-1 to Vancouver, the defending MLS Cup Champions will not be traveling to this season’s playoffs. As a result, Real Salt Lake, the Seattle Sounders, and Sporting Kansas City were able to solidify their spots, with Seattle earning a 2-1 victory over Salt Lake and Kansas City defeating San Jose 2-0.
The Colorado Rapids and FC Dallas were battling it out for the Supporters’ Shield. With Dallas two points ahead of Colorado coming into the day, Colorado needed a positive result against Houston and an FC Dallas loss or draw against the L.A Galaxy to claim the Shield. Both games ended in draws, with Dallas-L.A remaining scoreless and Houston-Colorado tied at 1-1. FC Dallas took home the Supporters’ Shield for the first time in club history.
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New York Red Bulls’ forward Bradley Wright-Phillips came into the day with a one goal lead over New York City FC striker David Villa in the race for the Golden Boot. Wright-Phillips was able to tack on another goal in today’s match against the Philadelphia Union, giving him 24 goals on the season and the Golden Boot award.
The MLS Cup Playoffs will start next week, with New York Red Bulls and New York City FC earning first round byes in the Eastern Conference, and FC Dallas and the Colorado Rapids earning byes in the Western Conference. Toronto FC will host the Philadelphia Union, while D.C United will host the Montreal Impact in the Eastern Conference. The L.A Galaxy will host Real Salt Lake, while the Seattle Sounders will host Sporting Kansas City in the Western Conference.
