Ranking Major League Soccer teams of all-time: Los Angeles Galaxy during David Beckham era; early D.C United clubs like Toronto FC and more

Who are the greatest Major League Soccer (MLS) teams of all-time? Following Wilfried Nancy’s successful lead of Columbus Crew to two trophies within nine months, an analysis needed to be taken of how things have progressed since 1996 and into 2024. From strong regular seasons and playoff runs to continental campaigns and continental runs, much has to be taken into consideration when ranking the greatest Major League Soccer (MLS) teams ever by era. Here is our list of these impressive squads! No longer than five seasons can pass before considering factors like domestic success, continental success and average league finish as criteria for ranking teams within Major League Soccer history eras: 10. So let’s have a look at which are among the greatest MLS teams ever: 10 New England Revolution (2005-07) Trophies:The Revolution have had one of the finest runs ever without winning Major League Soccer Cup; winning every Eastern Conference title from 2005-07 but falling just short at each final match. At least 2007 delivered one silverware victory – U.S. Open Cup glory over FC Dallas in an action-packed 3-2 tie! Pat Noonan, Taylor Twellman and Wells Thompson all scored goals for the Revolution during this match, with Twellman finishing as second in scoring at that tournament with four. Led by Steve Nicol, they became one of the dominant forces while giving birth to Clint Dempsey as an emerging talent. 9. Kansas City Wizards (1900-04) Trophy haul includes: 2000 Major League Soccer Cup2000 Supporters’ Shield2004 United Soccer Open Cup As Kansas City’s success builds, the Wizards are beginning to bring silverware along for the ride as well. Bob Gansler took charge during 1999 season, leading his new side immediately to win both Supporters’ Shield and Major League Soccer Cup, thanks to Tony Meola. While their performance would suffer slightly in subsequent seasons, their success in U.S. Open Cup against Chicago Fire secured their inclusion here on this list.
8.28%. Chicago Fire (2000-03) Trophies: 2000 U.S. Open Cup2003 U.S. Open Cup2003 Supporters’ ShieldIt may be hard to imagine how successful Chicago Fire were back then; with Jesse Marsch and Chris Armas leading from midfield during these early 2000’s years however. Bob Bradley established an unrivaled foundation of success at Chicago Fire by winning Major League Soccer Cup during their inaugural year (1998), while also helping lead them to reach Open Cup success and making MLS Cup finals during 2000 and 2001 respectively. At post Bradley Fire FC days when they had to relocate temporarily from Bradley Stadium for renovation work at Soldier Field, Dave Sarachan led his side to victory again – this time taking home both Supporter’s Shield and U.S. Open Cup titles that year! Little did they realize, this would mark their pinnacle of success as from 2003 until now they’ve only won one more trophy. 7. Columbus Crew (2008-11), having enjoyed much success over their eleven year history, have won eight MLS Cups as well as eight Supporters’ Shields since 2008. Given this fact, their main challenge will likely be selecting which era of Major League Soccer they should represent here – having enjoyed success both early 2000s as well as current. But winning their inaugural Major League Soccer Cup in 2008 seemed like the pinnacle of Columbus Crew’s achievements. By signing Guillermo Barros Schelotto and Alejandro Moreno to strengthen their side in 2007, Sigi Schmid led his Crew to success that year – winning both Supporters Shield and MLS Cup titles while Chad Marshall received Defender of the Year honors as well. As Schmid departed Columbus to pursue his coaching career at Seattle, his success at Columbus was not forgotten – they continued winning under Robert Warzycha in 2009 by adding another Supporters’ Shield win! 6. Los Angeles FC (2019-22) boasted immediate success from day one and won several accolades en route to making Bob Bradley an integral figure of LAFC as they raised expectations as an expansion team alongside Atlanta United. Starting play in 2018, Black and Gold won their inaugural Supporters Shield while Carlos Vela was named both Golden Boot winner and MVP. Diego Rossi joined later that year and also took home Golden Boot, helping lead his new teammates to another Supporters Shield victory and eventually an MLS Cup victory two years later in 2022.
5. Toronto FC (2016-18)Trophies won: 2016 Canadian Championship2017 Major League Soccer Cup2017 Supporters Shield2017 Canadian Championship2018 Canadian ChampionshipToronto FC may have reached new heights during 2017, when their 2017 campaign became one of their finest years ever. G. Vanney led Toronto FC to unprecedented success under his watch as they won all three MLS Cup and Canadian Championship titles – solidifying themselves as one of the greatest teams ever seen in League history while Sebastian Giovinco cemented his legacy within it. As Giovinco, Jozy Altidore and Victor Vazquez each scored 20+ goals across all competitions to help win the Supporters’ Shield by an unprecedented 12 point margin, the year was nothing but dominant. TFC would end each season in recent memory with Canadian Championship titles before returning to reality after Giovinco left. Toronto FC saw their point totals fall from first overall in their league to 19th over one season – an accumulation of 33 points lost, meaning they failed to qualify for playoffs. 4. Seattle Sounders from 2014-19: Trophies Won:2014 U.S. Open Cup2014 Supporters’ Shield2016 MLS Cup2019 MLS CupWhen Stefan Frei took charge in Seattle under Sigi Schmid in 2014, his tenure brought Seattle its inaugural Supporters Shield before losing in the Western Conference Finals to Los Angeles Galaxy. Schmid would step aside as manager of LA Galaxy in 2016, with Brian Schmetzer returning as their head coach – soon thereafter signing one of MLS history’s finest midfielders, Nicolas Lodeiro. Jordan Morris and Lodeiro could help Seattle offset Clint Dempsey’s irregular heartbeat to capture their first Major League Soccer Cup championship ever in 2016, before adding another in 2019. 3. Columbus Crew (2024-24)Trophies won: 2020 Major League Soccer Cup2021 Campeones Cup2023 Major League Soccer Cup2024 Leagues CupWith its return, Columbus Crew makes another appearance on this list of champion teams. Easily identifiable figures abound as this squad appears for two consecutive editions on this list of elite soccer clubs. Jimmy Haslam — owner of Cleveland Browns — purchased Columbus in 2020, prompting new management in Lucas Zelerayan and Darlington Nagbe to lead them quickly towards an MLS Cup championship under Caleb Porter. As Nancy took charge in 2022 and Cucho Hernandez joined as Captain of her crew following its downward slide, they would remain close. Zelerayan had just left for Saudi Arabia when Rossi arrived with Columbus Crew FC as its head of reload. Within nine months he helped lead them on an amazing run that won them not one but three cups – 2023 Major League Soccer Cup title, Concacaf Champions Cup final appearance and Leagues Cup win! They may end up higher on this list given they remain competitive for Supporters Shield title race while possibly going back-to-back for their respective MLS Cup victories; an amazing feat when used to reinvent oneself by someone like Rossi!
2. Los Angeles Galaxy (2010-14). Trophies won include 2010 Supporters’ Shield2011 Supporters’ Shield2012 MLS Cup2014 MLS Cup When considering top teams in Major League Soccer history, one that immediately comes to mind is Robbie Keane-led LA Galaxy who boast Robbie Keane-David Beckham-Landon Donovan trio as an iconic trio. While Bruce Arena provided coaching to many important players on this team of global superstars, they all lived up to expectations by performing admirably on the pitch. Wining three out of four Major League Soccer Cups between 2011 and 2014 and simultaneously collecting Supporters Shield victories was quite an amazing accomplishment, making them the first ever club to ever claim five MLS Cup titles (in 2014). 1. D.C. United (1996)-99) won eight trophies within three years: 1996 Major League Soccer Cup (1996 Supporters’ Shield/1996 U.S. Open Cup/1997 Supporters Shield1997 MLS Cup1998 Concacaf Champions Cup1998 Copa Interamericana 1999 Major League Soccer CupD.C United’s achievements may never be duplicated with eight titles won in just three seasons! They now stand as an unsurpassed force within soccer. One of the few true dynasties, D.C. were led by Arena and quickly found success using Jaime Moreno, Marco Etcheverry and Raul Diaz Arce as its core trio of players. U.S. internationals Eddie Pope, Jeff Agoos and John Harkes would later join their ranks too! D.C. would go on to win back-to-back Major League Soccer Cup titles between 1996 and 1997 as well as multiple Supporters Shields, Open Cup trophies, Concacaf Champions Cup victories and Copa Interamericana awards en route. Furthermore, CBS Soccer analyst Thomas Rongen led his side into victory a third time when they claimed another MLS Cup trophy that same year (1999).

There’s always more than meets the eye when it comes to business. Here’s something else we shouldn’t overlook though;