Examining What the New 2015 Conference Alignment Means for MLS

By Jackee Arce @knackeredwriter on October 27, 2014

On Monday, the day after the final matches of MLS regular season were played, MLS commissioner Don Garber made the official announcement of Chivas USA ceasing operations. He stated that the new L.A. team would return in 2017 and that a new soccer specific stadium, probably in the Downtown area, would be included. The biggest news overall came when it was announced that the conferences would have a new alignment, because without Chivas there would only be 20 clubs. Sporting Kansas City and Houston Dynamo would be moving to the Western Conference.

Clubs and fans in the Western Conference should not be happy about this. Yes, there will be better matches, and players will be pressured to constantly play their best, but this gives the Eastern Conference an unfair advantage for the playoffs. This statement is not a stretch.

The Seattle Sounders, Los Angeles Galaxy, Real Salt Lake and Kansas City are arguable the best clubs in MLS, and now they are all in the same conference. They are joined by San Jose Earthquakes and Houston, who both had bad seasons this year, but are known to often make the playoffs. The 2015 campaign will be interesting to say the least.

The Eastern Conference clubs will have a lot of room to shift around and bottom clubs may find themselves at the top. New York City FC and Orlando City SC will be joining the league, but the first years of expansion clubs are always a little rough, just as it has been for the Montreal Impact. It would be unlikely for NYCFC or Orlando to come out as victors, and if New York Red Bulls released Thierry Henry and Tim Cahill, as has been rumored, then they may also begin to struggle. This leaves DC United as a top club — in its current form — which opens up the playoff run for any team. The exact opposite of what will be happening in the West.

Of course, there may have been no way around this. Having a conference that was nine clubs and another that was 11 would also be unfair. It’s just unfortunate that the West now contains the top talent of MLS.

Jackee Arce is a soccer writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow her on Twitter @knackeredwriter, like her on Facebook or add her to your network on Google.