There are many opinions on the MLS from numerous managers and players around the world. We are going to take a peek at the MLS as an organisation and focus on individual Franchises that established the league. No matter what your view is of the MLS it has been a success in America and is continuing to grow every year with different Franchises joining the league. The MLS was created in 1993 in preparation for the subsequent years world cup, this was a guarantee made to FIFA if they were awarded the world cup. It was considered that the game would grow slowly as it has huge competition from more traditional sports in America, but this league would give it a stiff foundation of where to open. Every team began as a Franchise For Sale option across each city in America, extensive amounts of money was invested by sponsors and businessmen to get the Franchises underway and to build a Home Based Franchise for each major city.

The first game was kicked off in 1996 and the league comprised just 10 Home Based Franchise that were bought by wealthy sponsors or businessmen as a Franchise For Sale opportunity. The crowd for the games were quite good and the overall picture looked decent. However, at the beginning, the sport never really took off and the quality on the pitch was quite weak, this coupled with the teams not being competitive slowly put pay to crowd levels. A Home Based Franchise would struggle with the travel and outlay that the league endured at the beginning, so the Franchises endured in the long run.

After the 2002 world cup where the USA made the quarter-final stage there was a an increase in the popularity of the game. There was now a new commissioner in charge of building the MLS into a sporting brand for the Franchises and under his control the MLS began to see stars becoming attracted to the MLS.

The quality on the field still remains below the standard found at a top European league but the sum of stars that are attracted to the MLS, whether it be for the money or lifestyle is increasing. A Franchise For Sale in Toronto became available and this increased the leagues appeal to Canada, where football is more known.

We now take a short peek at the Chicago Fire franchise and how it has developed over the years to become one of the most known Franchises in America.

The club was founded on October 8, 1997. They are the most successful club in the modern U.S. Open Cup, winning titles in 1998, 2000, 2003, and 2006. Chicago’s chief opponent is FC Dallas. Since 2001, the two Franchises vie annually for the Brimstone Cup (started by the fans of both teams), which goes to the winner in the season series between them. While FC Dallas remains the most previously heated competitor, recent years have promoted hatred between the Fire and the New England Revolution with the clubs ending each other’s season every year since 2001. The Fire at first played at Soldier Field, but now have their own arena, Toyota Park at 71st and Harlem Avenue. Toyota Park is owned by the Village of Bridgeview and operated by the owners of the Fire, Andell Holdings, who acquired the club in 2007.