Los Angeles Galaxy has extended his dominance over the MLS Cup, the final stop of the Major League Soccer. Since its first edition in 1996, LA Galaxy has ruled, winning a six titles, more than any other team, but the last time was ten years ago. The other teams with more trophies are D.C. United (four times) and Columbus Crew (three times).
Riqui Puig, Galaxy’s star, didn’t play as he got injured in the previous game, the Western Conference final. Puig, formerly in FC Barcelona, played half hour with his anterior cruciate ligament torn and assisted the winning goal, but now he will stay off pitch for months.
LA Galaxy won 2-1 to New York Red Bulls, which tried to win their first MLS Cup after reaching the final twice. Joseph Paintsil and Dejan Joveljic scored the winning goals in the 9th and 13th minute, with New York Red Bulls scoring their only goal at the 28th minute.
The match was played at the Dignity Health Sports Park in Los Angeles in front of 26,800 spectators, according to EFE.
What is MLS Cup and how does it work
MLS works similarly to NBA. 29 participante teams are divided in two conferences, East and West. The team with more points in all regular season lifts the Supporter’s Shield, which grants them access to the CONCACAF Champions Cup.
After a regular season, the best teams of each conference play a series of playoff matches to decide the West and East Champion.
It was in the playoffs where fan favourite Inter Miami (the team with Messi, Jordi Alba, Luis Suárez and Sergio Busquets play) was surprisingly eliminated.
Soccer is becoming more and more popular in the US, thanks in great deal to those high profile signings by Inter Miami -team founded by David Beckham in 2018-, and will host next year FIFA Club World Cup and 2026’s “proper” World Cup.
