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Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sport
Ben Steiner

MLS Shootouts and More: Five Crazy Ways American Soccer Has Changed in 30 Years

MLS was a different world when it kicked off in 1996 | Stephen Dunn/Allsport/Getty

When the San Jose Earthquakes play the visiting D.C. United on Sunday, MLS will celebrate its 30th season with the exact matchup that launched the league in 1996.

The league has substantially changed over the last thirty years, however. Not only will Bruce Arena be standing on the San Jose touchline instead of D.C. United—the club he coached in 1996—but the league also finds itself as an established entity within global sports. 

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