Major League Soccer today announced that the leading goal-scorer during the 2005 MLS regular season will be recognized as the League's top scorer with the "Budweiser Golden Boot" award. In a move which brings MLS in line with other leagues around the world, the Budweiser Golden Boot will replace the Budweiser Scoring Champion, an award in place since the League's inception in 1996, which used a combination of goals scored (two points) and assists (one point) to determine the League's top scorer.
In keeping with established FIFA guidelines for the Golden Boot award in international competition, assists will serve as the first tiebreaker if two or more players have scored the same number of goals. The second tiebreaker will be goals per minute, rewarding the player with the highest goal scoring rate. The winner of the Budweiser Golden Boot will be recognized at the annual end-of-year MLS Awards Gala, to be held in the days leading up to the MLS Cup 2005 on Sunday, November 13, 2005 at the Frisco Soccer and Entertainment Center.
Major League Soccer's 10th Season kicks off on Saturday, April 2, 2005 with a full slate of games. First Kick 2005 is highlighted by the highly anticipated inaugural MLS match for Club Deportivo Chivas USA, as the expansion team plays host to MLS Cup champion D.C. United at The Home Depot Center in a match to be broadcast live on ABC Sports (3 p.m. ET).
In other matches on April 2: Clint Mathis and Eddie Pope lead Real Salt Lake against their former club, the MetroStars, at Giants Stadium (7 p.m. ET); the Los Angeles Galaxy travel to face the Supporters Shield winners, the Columbus Crew (7:30 p.m. ET on HDNet); the Western Conference Champion Kansas City Wizards and forward Josh Wolff host the Colorado Rapids (8 p.m. ET); the Chicago Fire battle Eddie Johnson and FC Dallas in the first installment of the Brimstone Cup (8:30 p.m. ET); and Taylor Twellman and the New England Revolution take on Brian Ching and the San Jose Earthquakes at Spartan Stadium to close out opening day (10 p.m. ET).
