The All-Star Break: What a casual fan can watch for

With this past week's matches having been completed, the league will take a rest as we head into the All-Star break. With the season at its 2/3 mark, the final race to the finish of the MLS league campaign is about to begin. For those who haven't been watching during the previous part of this season, the final leg contains several storylines that are worth following.

1.) MLS Success against the World's Best
While the US National team may not have fared well at the World Cup, MLS clubs are still hanging right with and at times beating the world's best, and most of these visiting teams have furnished most of their starters. DC United's reserves beat Celtic FC's starters 4-0. New England played Celtic to a 1-1 draw. Columbus tied Everton 1-1, Chivas USA beat North American champion Club America, and FC Dallas beat elite Mexican club Tigres in a two-leg exhibition series. Earlier in the season, Red Bull New York beat Bayern Munich 4-2, but the German champions furnished a reserve team with many starters on World Cup duty.

Still to come, DC United will play Real Madrid in Seattle, and Madrid will then play against Real Salt Lake in Utah. European Champion FC Barcelona visits Red Bull New York, and English champion Chelsea takes on the MLS All-Stars on Saturday. Even in losses, no MLS side has been embarassed or outclassed, which shows how the quality of competition in the league has grown, even in the last five years.

2.) DC Dominance
DC United has more or less locked up the Eastern Conference regular season championship with a record of 13-2-6. United recently had a 14-game unbeaten streak broken, and the 2006 United team could break the record for best regular season performance, currently held by the 1998 Los Angeles Galaxy who finished with a record of 24-8 (22-6-4 in today's scorekeeping with no OT). With a relatively easy draw in the US Open Cup, the possibility of United becoming the first team to complete the domestic treble (Open Cup, Regular Season Champs, MLS Cup Champs) is on the minds of the faithful on East Capitol Street. Anything short of an MLS Cup title will be a colossal dissappointment.

3.) The Wild Wild East
After DC, the rest of the East is up for grabs. Only 6 points separate 2nd place New England from 6th-place Columbus. Chicago has some advantage in this stretch because they have already played most of their road games, and have a match in hand. Five teams will fight for three playoff spots.

4.) Who's going to Europe, and when?
The FIFA summer transfer window is closing, and many US stars stayed put, likely as the result of a lackluster World Cup. However, Chelsea has shown interest in DC United playmaker Freddy Adu, and Clint Dempsey appears to be the next American to cross the pond. Dempsey has said that he wants to win MLS Cup to atone for his poor performance in Germany, despite the fact that he was the only American to register a goal. Jean-Phillippe Peguero has also attracted European interest.

5.) The Coaching Carousel
Anyone who said that MLS is a "no-pressure" league was sorely mistaken. Three coaches have gotten the ax already, and all three of their teams were in playoff contention. Frank Yallop (Los Angeles), Seth Stammler (Kansas City) and Bruce Arena (New York) have all been charged with the task of bringing their clubs to the promised land. Arena takes over RBNY on August 12. The Red Bulls are currently on a 5-game unbeaten streak, and have climbed out of the cellar and into 3rd place in the East. Dave Sarachan in Chicago is also on the hot seat. The Fire are on a 4-match winless streak and have looked lifeless in several outings.