Just four days left till First Kick, so let’s look at the No. 4 in MLS lore...
The Winning 4: D.C. United have four MLS Cup triumphs, the most in league history. They won the first two, added a third in 1999 and their fourth in 2004. They also top the record books with four Supporters’ Shields.
The Losing 4: Both the New England Revolution and LA Galaxy have lost four times in the MLS Cup. LA fell to DC in the inaugural Cup, then lost again in 1999, 2001 and '09. The Revs lost to LA in 2002 and '05, then to the Houston Dynamo in 2006 and 2007.
The Open 4: The Chicago Fire have won the US Open Cup four times, one off the record of five held jointly by Bethlehem Steel (the preeminent US team a century ago) and Maccabi Los Angeles, who dominated the tournament in the 1970s and early '80s. The Fire’s wins came in 1998, 2000, '03 and '06.
[inline_node:318960]4 in the Rockies: The Colorado Rapids may have won their first MLS Cup in 2010, but for the fourth straight year, they were unable to take the Rocky Mountain Cup from their great rivals Real Salt Lake.
4 Best XI: Landon Donovan, Shalrie Joseph and Jimmy Conrad have all made the MLS Best XI four times and will be looking to add a fifth honor this year. Retirees Eddie Pope, Marco Etcheverry and Preki also made four Best XIs.
The DC 4: D.C. United put four players into the 2006 Best XI – Jaime Moreno, Troy Perkins, Bobby Boswell and Christian Gómez. Only the 2001 Miami Fusion have done better.
Brian’s 4: Brian Carroll won four straight Supporters’ Shields from 2006 to '09, the first two with DC and the last two with Columbus.
4 the Win: The San Jose Earthquakes scored four goals in their 2003 MLS Cup win over the Fire, the best single-game output in Cup history.
