The Major League Soccer season kicks off with a historic matchup between the expansion Seattle Sounders FC and the MLS Cup finalists New York Red Bulls at Qwest Field on March 19, one of 27 regular season games to be broadcast in high definition on ESPN2, highlighting the 2009 schedule released on Wednesday.
Each of the 15 MLS teams will play 30 regular season games for a total of 225 games. Each team will meet twice for a base of 28 games and the two remaining games will be against conference opponents, with a priority on rivalries.
This year, 90 percent of the games will be played on the weekend (Friday evening, Saturday and Sunday), compared to 84 percent last season and 80 percent in 2007. The league also reduced the volume of games on World Cup qualifying dates Aug. 12, Sept. 5 and Oct. 10.
All MLS games on ESPN2 will be broadcast simultaneously on ESPN Deportes. In the third year of their eight-year agreement, MLS and ESPN decided together to look for opportunities to schedule ESPN2 matches on weekends, with 13 games airing on Friday nights, Saturday or Sunday.
TeleFutura will maintain its traditional Sunday afternoon timeslot for the Spanish-language network’s 24 regular season games. Fox Soccer Channel will again have a three-hour programming window called “MLS Saturday on FSC,” with 30-minute pre-game and post-game coverage for its 33 regular-season games.
In addition to the previously released First Kick lineup, there are plenty of intriguing matchups throughout the regular season schedule.
The battle for the Trillium Cup begins in Week 2 with Toronto FC heading to Columbus to meet the defending MLS Cup champion Crew for a Saturday night matchup. The Red Bulls will open their home slate against their heated rival, the New England Revolution, the same night in a game broadcast on Fox Soccer Channel.
The first leg of the SuperClasico will kick off in Week 4 with the Los Angeles Galaxy playing host to Chivas USA at The Home Depot Center on ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes on April 11. The two teams meet again on July 11 on Fox Soccer Channel and Fox Sports Espanol,this time with Chivas USA hosting, and then for a third time in a Galaxy home game on Aug. 29 on ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes.
Revenge will be on the mind of the Houston Dynamo when they play host to the New York Red Bulls in a rematch of last year’s Western Conference Semifinal Series upset on April 11 in a game broadcast on FSC and Fox Sports Espanol.
Week 5 begins with an always-spirited meeting between the New England Revolution and D.C. United on April 17 at 7 p.m. at RFK Stadium on ESPN2/ESPN Deportes while Real Salt Lake travels to Giants Stadium to face the New York Red Bulls in a rematch of last year’s memorable Western Conference Championship on April 18. The often-heated rivalry between the Los Angeles Galaxy and the San Jose Earthquakes will also reignite on April 18 at Buck Shaw Stadium.
The New York Red Bulls and Los Angeles Galaxy have played some memorable shootouts in the last two seasons and those two teams meet for the first time on May 2 at The Home Depot Center with the return leg set for July 18 at Giants Stadium in a game broadcast on FSC and Fox Sports Espanol.
The Red Bulls and Columbus Crew meet for the first time since MLS Cup 2008 on June 27 at Crew Stadium on FSC and Fox Sports Espanol.
If recent history is any indication, the final week of the regular season will be drama filled as teams vie for the final of eight playoff berths. The MLS regular season concludes on Oct. 25 with the Houston Dynamo facing Chivas USA at The Home Depot Center in a game broadcast on TeleFutura and the Columbus Crew hosting the New England Revolution.
The MLS Cup Playoffs begin on Oct. 29 and culminate in MLS Cup 2009 on the weekend of Nov. 21-22 at a site to be announced at a later date.