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| Event | MLS Cup | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Date | December 6, 2015 | ||||||
| Venue | Mapfre Stadium,Columbus, Ohio, US | ||||||
| Most Valuable Player | Diego Valeri (Portland Timbers)[1][2] | ||||||
| Referee | Jair Marrufo[3] | ||||||
| Attendance | 21,747 | ||||||
| Weather | Partly cloudy, 46 °F (8 °C)[4] | ||||||
←2014 2016 → | |||||||
MLS Cup 2015 was the 20th edition of theMLS Cup, the championship game ofMajor League Soccer (MLS). Thesoccer match was to determine the champion of MLS'2015 season. The championship was contested on December 6, 2015, between theColumbus Crew SC and thePortland Timbers atMAPFRE Stadium inColumbus, Ohio, with the latter winning 2–1 and earning a berth into the2016–17 CONCACAF Champions League.
The Timbers'Diego Valeri scored the fastest goal in MLS Cup history at 27 seconds after CrewgoalkeeperSteve Clark miscontrolled hisdefender's back-pass.[5] Portland doubled their lead in the seventh minute with a goal byRodney Wallace, and although Columbus got a goal back throughKei Kamara in the 18th minute, the Timbers held on for their first MLS Cup championship. It was the first men's professional sports championship for a team from the city ofPortland, Oregon since thePortland Trail Blazers won the1977 NBA championship.
| Knockout round | Conference semifinals | Conference finals | MLS Cup | |||||||||||||||||||
| October 29 –Stade Saputo | E3 | Montreal Impact | 2 | 1 | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| E6 | Toronto FC | 0 | E2 | Columbus Crew(a.e.t.) | 1 | 3 | 4 | |||||||||||||||
| E2 | Columbus Crew | 2 | 0 | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||
| E3 | Montreal Impact | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| E1 | New York Red Bulls | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||
| October 28 –RFK Stadium | E4 | D.C. United | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| December 6 –Mapfre Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| E5 | New England Revolution | 1 | E1 | New York Red Bulls | 1 | 1 | 2 | |||||||||||||||
| E2 | Columbus Crew | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| E4 | D.C. United | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| W3 | Portland Timbers | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| October 29 –Providence Park | W3 | Portland Timbers | 0 | 2 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| W6 | Sporting Kansas City | 2(6) | W2 | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||||||||||||||
| W3 | Portland Timbers | 3 | 2 | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||
| W3 | Portland Timbers(p) | 2(7) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| W1 | FC Dallas | 1 | 2 | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||
| October 28 –CenturyLink Field | W4 | Seattle Sounders FC | 2 | 1 | 3(2) | |||||||||||||||||
| W5 | LA Galaxy | 2 | W1 | FC Dallas(p) | 1 | 2 | 3(4) | |||||||||||||||
| W4 | Seattle Sounders FC | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Source:[6]
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Portland opened up the scoring early asmidfielderDiego Valeri swiped the ball out from underColumbusgoalkeeperSteve Clark and flicked the ball into the back of the net with one touch at the 27-second mark. It was the fastest ever goal scored in an MLS Cup match.[7] The Timbers kept the pressure on, and when theassistant referee failed to call a ball out of bounds after it drifted across the sideline and several Crew players stopped playing, Portland midfielderDarlington Nagbe capitalized, passing to forwardLucas Melano to set the table for a goal by leftwingerRodney Wallace that put Portland on top 2–0 in the seventh minute.[8]
In the 18th minute, Columbus got on the board after Portland goalkeeperAdam Kwarasey failed to take control in a scramble at the goal line and Columbus forwardKei Kamara, the league's leading scorer, shot the ball into the net. Kamara's goal to make the game 2–1 ended up as Columbus' only shot on goal of the match.[9]
Portland got a number of opportunities to score in the second half, but the Timbers failed to convert. In the 60th minute, a Portlandcorner kick resulted in a loose ball in the penalty box, which ricocheted off the goalpost before being cleared after striking Columbus captainMichael Parkhurst's arm on the goal line. However, nohandball was called and no goal was awarded. In the 69th minute, Portland strikerFanendo Adi headed the ball toward the goal, but it deflected off the far goalpost and then bounced away off Clark's body.[9] Clark also stopped a point-blank header from Portland center backNat Borchers in the 81st minute, and then tipped another shot by Adi over the net shortly thereafter. The game ended with a 2–1 scoreline as Columbus was unsuccessful in taking advantage of Portland's missed opportunities, giving the Timbers their first MLS Cup victory and the city of Portland its first men's pro sports championship sincethe Portland Trail Blazers won the NBA championship in 1977. Valeri was named the match'sMost Valuable Player.[10]
          Columbus Crew SC |      Portland Timbers |
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MLS Cup MVP:Diego Valeri[11] Assistant referees:[3] | Match rules
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