MLS All-Star Game

Major League Soccer's first all-star game was played at Giants Stadium in the summer of 1996. The game, using an East–West format with players handpicked by the coaching staffs to emulate other American leagues, was the first game of a doubleheader with the Brazil national team defeating a team of FIFA World All-Stars.[2][3] The matchup between divisions would only be used for six seasons as MLS tried experimenting with different formats. The 1998 All-Star Game placed a team of American MLS players against MLS players from abroad. The 2002 game, the first to use a league-wide all-star team, was the only game to feature a national team opponent.

Since then (except in 2004), every opponent has been a foreign club invited by the league. The MLS All-Stars won their first six games before falling to Everton in penalties in 2009. All games from 2005 to 2019 have been against teams from Europe, the majority of which have been from England's Premier League. The European league schedule runs from fall to spring, allowing for a fixture against the MLS All-Stars during the preseasons of teams.[4] The 2020 All-Star Game was to be the first to feature the all-star team from another league, Liga MX; however, that game was cancelled.[5]

In August 2005, an 18-player all-star team squad named the "MLS Select Team" competed in the Trofeo Santiago Bernabéu, a friendly hosted by Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid. The All-Star team, coached by Steve Nicol, lost 5–0 after being given only two days to prepare between normal league matches.[6]

The roster is chosen using a mix of fan votes, nominations from the coach, and commissioner's pick. Some players, including English midfielders Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard in 2015, have been picked to participate in the All-Star Game despite not playing in club matches.[7] Players who are picked to play in the All-Star Game but refuse to join the team are suspended from one league match.[8]

For 2014, ten players were chosen by All-Star Game coach Caleb Porter, eleven players were chosen by fan voting (subject to Porter's approval), and two were selected by MLS commissioner Don Garber.[9]

The modern incarnation of the MLS All-Star Skills Challenge, introduced in 2018, is a freestyle soccer event that features three-player teams competing against each other in minigames, including a touch-and-volley goal showcase, a shooting accuracy competition, and a passing-and-shooting challenge.[10] The older version of the skills challenge was retired in 2001 and featured other events, including "goalie wars" and soccer tennis.[11]

Team	Winner	Runner-up	Total
MLS All-Stars	11	9	20
MLS East	5[lower-alpha 1]	1	6
MLS West	2[lower-alpha 1]	4	6
Arsenal	2	—	2
Manchester United	2	—	2
Everton	1	—	1
Juventus	1	—	1
Roma	1	—	1
Atlético Madrid	1	—	1
Real Madrid	1	—	1
MLS USA	1	—	1
Chelsea	—	2	2
Fulham	—	1	1
Tottenham Hotspur	—	1	1
West Ham United	—	1	1
Bayern Munich	—	1	1
Guadalajara	—	1	1
Celtic	—	1	1
MLS World	—	1	1
United States	—	1	1
Liga MX All-Stars	—	2	2

Notes

Since 2023, rights for the MLS All-Star Game have been held by Apple TV+. The match and associated events are broadcast in English, French, and Spanish on MLS Season Pass;[18] the 2023 edition was made free to stream.[19]

The U.S. broadcast in English alternated between ESPN and Fox from 2015 to 2022, with the networks also alternating the MLS Cup.[20][21] In even numbered years, ESPN has broadcast the All-Star Game[22] while Fox would broadcast the MLS Cup. Likewise, in odd numbered years, Fox would be slated to broadcast the All-Star Game[23][24] while ESPN or its sister network, ABC beginning in 2019, would broadcast the MLS Cup.