2006 Major League Soccer season
The 2006 Major League Soccer season was the 11th season in the history of Major League Soccer. It began on April 1, 2006, and ended with MLS Cup 2006 on November 12, 2006, at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas, for the second consecutive year.
Changes from 2005 season
- The MetroStars were bought by Austrian company Red Bull and rebranded as Red Bull New York, with the playing squad known as the New York Red Bulls.
- The San Jose Earthquakes players and head coach Dominic Kinnear moved to Houston, Texas, due to owner AEG being unable to secure a soccer specific stadium in San Jose, California. The team was to be renamed Houston 1836, but later changed its name to the Houston Dynamo.
- In June, the Chicago Fire moved into their new soccer-specific stadium, Toyota Park, in Bridgeview, Illinois.
Final standings
Eastern Conference
Western Conference
Overall
MLS Cup playoffs
----Conference semifinals
D.C. United advance 2–1 on aggregate.----
New England Revolution advance 4–2 on penalties.
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Colorado Rapids advance 5–4 on penalties.
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Houston Dynamo advance 3–2 on aggregate.
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Conference finals
New England Revolution advances 1–0 in single elimination.----
Houston Dynamo advances 3–1 in single elimination.
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[MLS Cup 2006]
The Houston Dynamo win MLS Cup 4–3 on penalties.Team awards
- MLS Cup: Houston Dynamo
- U.S. Open Cup: Chicago Fire
- MLS Supporters' Shield: D.C. United
- MLS Reserve Division: Colorado Rapids
International competition
Los Angeles Galaxy
Lost Deportivo Saprissa in quarterfinals.
New England Revolution
Lost LD Alajuelense in quarterfinals.
Individual awards
| Award | Player | Club |
| Most Valuable Player |  Christian Gómez | D.C. United |
| Golden Boot |  Jeff Cunningham points | Real Salt Lake |
| Defender of the Year |  Bobby Boswell | D.C. United |
| Goalkeeper of the Year | Troy Perkins | D.C. United |
| Rookie of the Year | Jonathan Bornstein | C.D. Chivas USA |
| Coach of the Year | Bob Bradley | C.D. Chivas USA |
| Comeback Player of the Year | Richard Mulrooney | FC Dallas |
| Goal of the Year | Brian Ching | Houston Dynamo |
| Fair Play Award | Chris Klein | Real Salt Lake |
| Humanitarian of the Year | Michael Parkhurst | New England Revolution |
Top goal scorers
| Position | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Jeff Cunningham | Real Salt Lake | 16 |
| 2 |  Christian Gómez | D.C. United | 14 |
 Ante Razov | C.D. Chivas USA | 14 | |
| 3 |  Carlos Ruíz | FC Dallas | 13 |
| 4 | Landon Donovan | Los Angeles Galaxy | 12 |
| 5 |  Jaime Moreno | D.C. United | 11 |
 Dwayne De Rosario | Houston Dynamo | 11 | |
| Taylor Twellman | New England Revolution | 11 | |
| Kenny Cooper | FC Dallas | 11 | |
| Brian Ching | Houston Dynamo | 11 |
Goal-scoring totals
| Club | Overall Record | Goals For | Goals For Avg. | Goals Against | Goals Against Avg. |
| D.C. United | 15–7–10 | 52 | 1.63 | 38 | 1.19 |
| FC Dallas | 16–12–4 | 48 | 1.50 | 44 | 1.38 |
| C.D. Chivas USA | 10–9–13 | 45 | 1.41 | 42 | 1.31 |
| Real Salt Lake | 10–13–9 | 45 | 1.41 | 49 | 1.53 |
| Houston Dynamo | 11–8–13 | 44 | 1.38 | 40 | 1.25 |
| Chicago Fire | 13–11–8 | 43 | 1.34 | 41 | 1.28 |
| Kansas City Wizards | 10–14–8 | 43 | 1.34 | 45 | 1.41 |
| New York Red Bulls | 9–11–12 | 41 | 1.28 | 41 | 1.28 |
| New England Revolution | 12–8–12 | 39 | 1.22 | 35 | 1.09 |
| Los Angeles Galaxy | 11–15–6 | 37 | 1.16 | 37 | 1.16 |
| Colorado Rapids | 11–13–8 | 36 | 1.13 | 49 | 1.53 |
| Columbus Crew | 8–15–9 | 30 | 0.94 | 42 | 1.31 |
| Overall Totals | 503 | 2.62 |
Team attendance totals
| Club | Stadium | Games | Season | Game avg. |
| Chicago Fire | Toyota Park | 16 | 225,775 | 14,111 |
| CD Chivas USA | Home Depot Center | 16 | 317,432 | 19,840 |
| Colorado Rapids | INVESCO Field | 16 | 192,894 | 12,056 |
| Columbus Crew | Columbus Crew Stadium | 16 | 212,699 | 13,294 |
| New York Red Bulls | Giants Stadium | 16 | 233,112 | 14,570 |
| Kansas City Wizards | Arrowhead Stadium | 16 | 177,322 | 11,083 |
| D.C. United | Robert F. Kennedy Stadium | 16 | 291,442 | 18,215 |
| New England Revolution | Gillette Stadium | 16 | 188,569 | 11,786 |
| Los Angeles Galaxy | Home Depot Center | 16 | 333,016 | 20,814 |
| Houston Dynamo | Robertson Stadium | 16 | 302,957 | 18,935 |
| FC Dallas | Pizza Hut Park | 16 | 239,714 | 14,982 |
| Real Salt Lake | Rice-Eccles Stadium | 16 | 261,855 | 16,366 |
| MLS Totals | 192 | 2,976,787 | 15,504 |
Coaches
Eastern Conference
- D.C. United: Piotr Nowak
- Kansas City Wizards: Bob Gansler and Brian Bliss
Western Conference
- Chivas USA: Bob Bradley
- FC Dallas: Colin Clarke
- Houston Dynamo: Dominic Kinnear
- Real Salt Lake: John Ellinger