Editorial: Looking Back On MLS Cup 2012 (VIDEO)
The MLS Multiplex, part of the world-famous FanSided Network, continues its ongoing series of reflections of the past 19 MLS Cup finals heading into the 2015 Major League Soccer season. Today, on this wonderful Christmas Eve, we take a look back at the 2012 MLS Cup final between Bruce Arena’s Los Angeles Galaxy and Dominic Kinnear’s Houston Dynamo. The 2012 season marked the 100th year of FIFA-sanctioned soccer in the United States of America. But there was more to it than that.
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The Montreal Impact became the third Canadian team to join the league, following Toronto FC and the Vancouver Whitecaps. Age-based salary cap charges for Designated Players were instituted in this season, the MLS Cup final was moved to December and an unbalanced schedule put more weight on in-conference matchups. The league received a new partner in NBC Sports, who joined a massive team of television networks covering the league, including ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Deportes, Galavision, Univision, TSN, TSN2 and GolTV, not counting regional carriers.
In terms of jersey sponsors, BMO became the first shirt sponsor for L’Impact. The Chicago Fire gained a new jersey sponsor in Quaker Oats. Barbasol became the new jersey sponsor for the Columbus Crew and AdvoCare reached an agreement with FC Dallas to be its first shirt sponsor.
The Galaxy had a tough 2012 campaign, falling flat early in the season before recovering to qualify for the playoffs. Nonetheless, the core of their players remained: Designated Players Landon Donovan, David Beckham and Robbie Keane; defenders Omar Gonzalez, Sean Franklin, Todd Dunivant and A.J. DeLaGarza, midfielders Juninho and Marcelo Sarvas, and forwards Mike Magee and Edson Buddle, the latter of who would go on to the Colorado Rapids. Los Angeles finished the regular season with a record of 16-12-6 (54 points), good for fourth place in the Western Conference.
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In the Knockout Round, goals from Magee (59′) and Donovan (73′) gave the Galaxy a 2-1 win over the Whitecaps. The Galaxy would then face the San Jose Earthquakes in the Western Conference Semifinals. After losing the first leg at StubHub Center (then known as the Home Depot Center) 1-0, the Galaxy stormed back with a brace from Robbie Keane (21′, 34′) and the clincher from Mike Magee in the 39th minute to give LA a 3-2 victory on aggregate.
The Western Conference Championship saw the Galaxy take on the Seattle Sounders for the right to host the MLS Cup Final, since the higher-seeded D.C. United would fall to the Dynamo. In the first leg at StubHub, another brace from Keane (46′, 67′) and an insurance strike from Magee (64′) were enough for the Galaxy to go through. The second leg did see the Galaxy lose at CenturyLink Field in Seattle, Wash., 2-1. Keane scored in the 68th minute of play.
Houston weren’t faring much better, either. They ended the regular season with a 14-9-11 record and finished fifth place in the MLS Eastern Conference. Like Los Angeles, the core of its club was intact: goalkeeper Tally Hall; defenders Jermaine Taylor, Kofi Sarkodie, Geoff Cameron and Bobby Boswell; midfielders Je-Vaughn Watson (who later went to FC Dallas), Corey Ashe and Brad Davis; and forwards Brian Ching, Cam Weaver, Macoumba Kandji, Will Bruin and Calen Carr. Houston would witness a resurgence with key additions such as Oscar Boniek Garcia, Ricardo Clark and Giles Barnes.
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The Dynamo opened up their postseason campaign with a Knockout Round game against the Chicago Fire. Bruin scored in the 12th and 46th minutes to give Houston a 2-1 victory over the Chicago Fire at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Ill. Up next for the Dynamo was a match with Sporting Kansas City in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Houston won the first leg, 2-0, at the newly-constructed BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston, Tex., on goals from Adam Moffat (18′) and Bruin (75′). That would be enough for Houston to go through, as the Dynamo only lost the second leg by a score of 1-0 at Sporting Park in Kansas City, Kan. In the Western Conference Championship, the Dynamo rolled past D.C. United 4-2 on aggregate. The first leg at BBVA Compass was a 3-1 victory to Houston on goals from Andre Hainault (51′), Bruin (68′) and Sarkodie. Garcia scored in the 34th minute of the 1-1 draw with D.C. in the second leg at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C.
MLS Cup 2012 was held on Dec. 1, 2012 at the Hub in Carson. This battle between the Galaxy and the Dynamo would see far more scoring. Calen Carr opened up the scoring late in the first half with a strike in the 44th minute of play. But the Galaxy would rally back with goals from game MVP Omar Gonzalez (60′), Donovan (65′) and Keane (90′ +4′) en route to a 3-1 victory and the fourth MLS Cup for the Galaxy, tying D.C. United.
This match marked the farewell for Beckham, who concluded his time as a player in the league. Beckham would go on to win one more league championship, this time with Ligue 1 powerhouse Paris St. Germain, before hanging up his cleats. As for Donovan, he wanted to retire after this season, but he would go on to play two more season and leave the game on a winning note in 2014.