2019 MLS Betting Picks - Bet on USA Soccer League

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2019 MLS Betting Odds and Lines

The success of Major League Soccer is now a model for other nascent sports leagues to emulate in America. The MLS was founded as part of a push to get soccer to catch on in the States in concurrence with the U.S. hosting the 1994 World Cup. Interest in the national team surged after the World Cup, and hopes were high for the MLS once it started play in 1996. However, things were touch and go for a number of years before the league stabilized this decade.

For the first decade of its existence, the MLS was barely, if at all, profitable. Teams in Tampa and Miami folded, and it looked like the league might eventually go down the same path as the NASL with interest seemingly tapering off. However, over the last decade the league has not only stabilized but thrived. The arrival of soccer-only stadiums helped teams create a sense of community with smaller, livelier atmospheres, while the improving fortunes of the national team led to continued interest in the domestic league. Others latched on because of the gravity attached to former stars like David Beckham and Thierry Henry joining the league, but all of these factors contributed to the growth of the MLS.

The Los Angeles Galaxy have been the MLS’ poster franchise since the inception of the league. The LA lifestyle has allowed the team to attract star players like Beckham and Zlatan Ibrahimovic from overseas, and they have been the most successful franchise in the league by a wide margin. The Galaxy were able to win the MLS Cup in 2002, 2005, 2011, 2012, and 2014, while finishing runner-up in 1996, 1999, 2001, and 2009.

D.C. United were the league’s most successful club through the first decade, winning three of the first four titles and four MLS Cups overall, but their fortunes have fallen significantly since then. The Houston Dynamo, Sporting Kansas City, and the San Jose Earthquakes are the only other teams to have won multiple titles in the history of the MLS. The New England Revolution are the Buffalo Bills of the league, with five runner-up finishes without a title to their name.

2019 MLS Clubs

Major League Soccer Past Winners

The 2019 campaign marks the 24th season of the MLS. Since the MLS’ inception, three teams have folded, but the league has continued to grow and add more clubs. It has recently brought teams to Orlando, Atlanta, Minneapolis, and Cincinnati, while adding second teams to mega cities like Los Angeles and New York.

More expansion is on the way too. Miami and Nashville are both set to enter the MLS in 2020 and FC Austin was recently awarded an expansion franchise for the 2021 campaign, bringing the total number of teams to 27. Establishing markets in those cities will also help when the World Cup comes to America in 2026.

MLS is one of the few soccer leagues without promotion or relegation. That has given teams more of an opportunity to experiment and do full rebuilds when the need arises rather than just continue to hover in the middle of the pack. Little things like this have helped the MLS find its niche and help soccer stay relevant in America.

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