MLS Supporters' Shield

The Major League Soccer Supporters' Shield is an annual award given to the Major League Soccer team with the best regular season record, as determined by the MLS points system. The award is similar to the President's Trophy in the National Hockey League. Since 2006, the Shield winner has been given a direct Group Stage spot in the CONCACAF Champions League, along with the winner of the MLS Cup. With four Shields, D.C. United has won the most regular season titles of any MLS club.

The defending Supporters Shield winners are the Los Angeles Galaxy.

History

Supporters' Fundraise Trophy

When Major League Soccer had its inagural season in 1996, the league resembled its contemporary North American leagues. Subsequent to the regular season, the campaign was culminated by the MLS Cup Playoffs, en route to the league's championship match, the MLS Cup. The club with the best regular season record received nothing more than the top seed in the playoffs.

Though the original creator of the Shield is unknown, it has been reported that it was a Tampa Bay Mutiny fan, possibly in result to the Mutiny earning the best regular season record, but failing to win the 1996 MLS Cup final. Originally, the idea was to call the award the "Scudetto", an allude to the champions of the Italian Serie A, but it was met with little praise. Consequently, nothing in terms of an award materialized.

The following year, another group led by a soccer enthusiast Sam Pierron tried to revive the idea...
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