Major League Soccer expands to a 34-game schedule in 2011

Major League Soccer will now feature a 34-game season in 2011.

Photo: Photo: Getty Images/Mike Stobe

Major League Soccer has announced that they will expand the regular season from 30 games to 34 games in 2011. MLS is expanding the size of the league from 16 teams to 18 teams with the addition of the Portland Timbers, coached by John Spencer, and the Vancouver Whitecaps.

The season will run for 32 straight weeks with no stoppage in play for any tournaments like they did in 2010 for the World Cup. The season will begin on March 19th and run until October 22nd. An MLS committee will meet in October to decide upon the scheduling details.

Hopefully, the home-and-away balanced schedule will continue in 2011. More or less, it makes the league into a single table. This year with a balanced schedule will be the first year where undoubtedly the most deserving eight teams make the MLS Cup playoffs. If the season ended today, six teams from the Western Conference would make the playoffs joining just New York and Columbus from the East. With the addition of two more Western teams in 2011, it may be time that Major League Soccer finally switches to a single table format