mls staff directory 420 Fifth Avenue, 7th Floor New York, New York 10018 Phone (212) 450-1200 Fax (212) 450-1300 www.MLSnet.com DON GARBER MLS Commissioner COMMISSIONER'S OFFICE LEGAL Commissioner Don Garber VP Business and Legal Affairs William Z. Ordower President, MLS Mark Abbott Legal Counsel Jennifer Duberstein President, SUM Doug Quinn Associate Legal Counsel Brett Lashbrook Executive VP MLS JoAnn Neale Administrator, Legal Jasmin Rivera Chief Financial Officer Sean Prendergast Sr. VP of Strategic Business Development Nelson Rodriguez BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT Special Assistant to the Commissioner Ali Curtis Exec. Vice President, SUM Kathryn Carter Executive Assistant to the Commissioner Erin Grady VP, Business Development Michael Gandler Executive Assistant to Mark Abbott Ashley Drezner Director, Online Ad Network Chris Schlosser Manager, Business Development Courtney Carter BROADCASTING Manager, Business Development Steve Jolley Executive Producer, Broadcasting/SUM Michael Cohen Manager, Business Development Anthony Rivera Director, Broadcasting Larry Tiscornia Executive Assistant, SUM Monique Beau Manager, Broadcasting Jason Saghini Executive Assistant, SUM Alyssa Enverga Coordinator, Broadcasting Johanna Rojas Consultant, SUM Dave Mosca Consultant, Digital Strategy Ahmed El-Kadars COMMUNICATIONS AND MLS INTERNET NETWORK Sr. VP, Marketing and Communications Dan Courtemanche PARTNERSHIP MARKETING Director, Communications Will Kuhns Vice President, Partnership Marketing David Wright Director, International Communications Marisabel Munoz Director, Partnership Marketing Camilo Durano Manager, Corporate Communications Sean Dennison Director, Partnership Marketing Russell Sargeant Manager, Sports Communications Stephen Rodriguez Operations Manager, Partnership Marketing Craig McCarthy Coordinator, International Communications Ben Spencer Coordinator, Partnership Marketing Lina Staropoli Coordinator of New Media Public Relations Susan Marschall Account Executive, Partnership Marketing Emily Behncke Editorial Consultant, MLS Communications Rick Lawes Account Executive, Partnership Marketing Casey Prozeller Consultant, International Communications Gabriel Gabor Account Executive, Partnership Marketing Ixzchel Salgado Consultant, International Communications Kristel Valencia Coordinator, Partnership Marketing Lina Staropoli General Manager Baseball Advanced Media (BAM) Martin Keely MARKETING & CONSUMER PRODUCTS FINANCE & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Vice President, Consumer Products Stu Crystal Controller Adam Wagner Retail Manager, Consumer Products Carly Melton Director, Payroll & Tax Walter Konopka Director, Marketing Marco Liceaga Accounting Manager Yesenia Martinez Manager, Marketing Charlie Shin Manager, Financial Analysis & Reporting Josh Neier Senior Manager, Design Thibault Chevillard Coordinator, Finance Edwin Fernandez Traffic Coordinator Michele de Maria Coordinator, Accounts Payable Camille Carillo Graphic Designer Nate Ripp Senior Accountant Dustin Smith Director, Fan Development Neel Shah Staff Accountant Alex Goldberg Coordinator, Fan Development Jimmy Morris Staff Accountant Oscar Oriondo Coordinator, Fan Development Jose Galvan Director, Information Technology John Sullivan Graphic Designer Melissa Gonzalez Coordinator, Information Technology Christian Barris Regional Ambassador, Fan Development Mark Santel Regional Ambassador, Fan Development Dante Washington MLS STAFF GAME OPERATIONS Manager, Community Relations Jan Greenberg Senior Director, Operations Evan Dabby Coordinator, Community Relations Katie Proudman Manager, Game Operations Jef Thiffault Manager, Operations Jeremy Lisch SPECIAL EVENTS Coordinator, Operations Nicole Raymond Vice President, Special Events Geoffrey Hayes Coordinator, Operations Luis Rodriguez Director, Special Events Jen Maurillo Consultant, Operations Diane Johnson Manager, Special Events Lindsay Nevins Consultant, Operations Jan Osborne Coordinator, Special Events Alex Rieben HUMAN RESOURCES & ADMINISTRATION SOCCER AND PLAYER DEVELOPMENT Director, HR & Administration Susie Goldsmith Exec. VP, Player Relations & Competition Todd Durbin Coordinator, HR & Administration Donna Martinez Senior Director, Player Personnel Lino DiCuollo Benefits Manager Yanick Sohan Director, Player Programs Alfonso Mondelo Office Administrator Georgia Crosby Manager, Player Personnel Jessica Minetti Receptionist Catherine Irick Coordinator, Player Personnel Vanessa DiLiddo Asst. to Commissioner's Office for On-Field Competition Joe Machnik INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS Exec. VP of Int'l Business & Special Events Will Wilson TEAM SERVICES Director, International Business Orlando Conguta Head of Team Services Paul Mott Manager, International Business Take Nakamura VP, Team Services Brad Pursel Consultant, International Business and Operations Thom Meredith Senior Director, Team Services Bryant Pfeiffer 202 league facts WHAT Major League Soccer is the top-flight professional soccer league in the United States and was founded in 1996, after the country hosted the 1994 FIFA World Cup. Having recently finished its 13th season, MLS will kick off its 14th campaign on March 19, 2009. The League will see its 15th team, Seattle Sounders FC, debut this season. MLS continues to grow as Philadelphia will begin play in 2010 and multiple cities are bidding to become the homes of the next two clubs. MLS plans to announce the next round of expansion before the start of the 2009 regular season. TEAMS Eastern Conference Western Conference Chicago Fire Chivas USA Columbus Crew Colorado Rapids D.C. United FC Dallas Kansas City Wizards Houston Dynamo New England Revolution LA Galaxy New York Red Bulls Real Salt Lake Toronto FC San Jose Earthquakes Seattle Sounders FC SEASON o The 2009 MLS regular season opens March 19 and ends Oct. 25. The MLS Cup Playoffs begin Oct 29. MLS Cup 2009, the League's championship game, will take place Nov. 21 or 22. The site has yet to be determined. o In 2009, the 15 MLS teams will each play a 30-game regular season and eight teams will advance to the MLS Cup Playoffs. The top two teams in each conference, plus four "wild cards" with the most points after 30 games, regardless of conference, will qualify. The team that finishes with the most regular season points is awarded the Supporters' Shield. o More than 36 million fans have attended regular season games in MLS' 13-season history. o In the 2008 Sierra Mist MLS All-Star Game, the MLS All-Stars defeated English Premier League side West Ham United at BMO Field in Toronto, home of Toronto FC. MLS is now 5-0 against international opponents in All-Star Games. The 2009 MLS All-Star Game will be held July 29 at Rio Tinto Stadium, home of Real Salt Lake, featuring an international opponent to be announced. o In 2008, eight of the 14 teams played in soccer-specific stadiums that were custom built for MLS teams during the past seven years. Three new soccer stadiums are scheduled to be completed during the next two years (More on stadiums below). PLAYERS As of Sept. 9, 2008, MLS had 137 players born outside the United States, representing 51 different countries. About two-thirds of the entire MLS player pool is U.S.-born. A description of several notable MLS players follows: o Juan Pablo Ángel (New York Red Bulls): Colombian forward was a standout with Aston Villa in England before joining the Red Bulls as a Designated Player in 2007. Has scored 33 goals in two seasons in MLS. o David Beckham (Los Angeles Galaxy): Former Real Madrid/Manchester United midfielder and current English national team midfielder joined the Galaxy in 2007 as a Designated Player. o Cuauhtémoc Blanco (Chicago Fire): One of the most popular athletes in Mexico, he joined the Fire in 2007 as a Designated Player. A two-time finalist for MLS MVP, he was named to the MLS Best XI in 2008. o Jimmy Conrad (Kansas City Wizards): Veteran defender was a standout for the U.S. World Cup team in Germany in 2006. He's a four-time MLS Best XI member. o Kenny Cooper (FC Dallas): The 6-foot, 3-inch, 210 pound forward ranked second in goals scored in 2008 with 18. He was an MLS All-Star and member of the MLS First XI team. The 24-year old Dallas, Texas product is one of the brightest young talents in the League. o Dwayne De Rosario (Toronto FC): De Rosario, from Scarborough, Ontario, is one of the League's most exciting and dangerous playmakers. He is the only two-time MLS Cup MVP winner. De Rosario was traded to his hometown team, Toronto FC, from Houston in December, 2008. o Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy): Considered the best American player today, Donovan, 26, is the all-time leader in goals and assists for the U.S. Men's National Team, a three-time MLS Cup winner and the League's 2008 Budweiser Golden Boot winner with 20 goals. o Luciano Emilio (D.C. United): The 2007 winner of the Budweiser Golden Boot for most goals and the League MVP, this Brazilian striker became the first player since 2002 to score 20 goals in a season. o Freddie Ljungberg (Seattle Sounders FC): A former standout with Arsenal and West Ham United of the English Premier League, Ljungberg was signed as Sounders FC's first Designated Player in October 2008. Ljungberg captained the MLS FACTS Swedish National Team at the 2008 UEFA Championships. o Guillermo Barros Schelotto (Columbus Crew): The Argentine playmaker was named the League's Volkswagen MVP in 2008 and was also named the MLS Cup 2008 MVP after leading the Crew to their first MLS title. He recorded a League- high 19 assists in 2008 and was recently re-signed becoming the Crew's