Toronto FC announced Friday that Head Coach Mo Johnston will return for the 2008 season after having the option on his contract exercised. Johnston was hired as coach of the expansion team on August 25, 2006 and was signed to a contract running through the 2009 season that was based on team options. In the inaugural season Johnston lead the team to a record of 6-17-7 (25 points in 30 games) which was better than any previous expansion team record in Major League Soccer since they implemented ties. In 2005, Chivas USA finished their first season with a record of 4-22-6 (18 points in 32 games) while Real Salt Lake ended up 5-22-6 (21 points in 32 games).
"Being an expansion team in any sport is always a challenge, and we feel Mo has done a sound job of identifying talent and bringing in players who could become the foundation of our franchise," said Tom Anselmi, executive vice-president and chief operating officer of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd. "He has brought his passion for the game to our fans, and has been the inspiration behind a club that has taken the Toronto sports scene by storm. We look forward to building upon that in the coming year."</p>
"I'm ecstatic. I love being in Toronto--it's a great city," said Johnston. "It's a terrific place to work; the fans are incredible. They're a tremendous motivation for us looking ahead to next year. Soccer is thriving in Toronto, and it's only going to get bigger and better."</p>
After starting it's first season 0-4 (with three of those games away from BMO Field) the team turned things around in May, June, and July by posting the 5th best point total in MLS through those three months, (6th in June). However, a rash of injuries, National team call-ups, and long stretches away from home due to the FIFA U-20 World Cup began to take its toll on the team in August and September and the momentum built up in the summer began to fade.</p>
Toronto FC enjoyed an outstanding inaugural season, selling out all 15 of their MLS home games with an average crowd of 20,000. The team also hosted two International friendlies with games against Benfica of Portugal, and Aston Villa of the English Premier League.</p>
