Major League Soccer welcomed its 13th team on Thursday when the league's first-ever Canadian club, Toronto FC, was unveiled at a press conference in the Ontario city. The team's name and logo were announced to the public for the first time and play will begin north of the border in the 2007 season at the National Soccer Stadium at Exhibition Place, which is currently under construction.
Major League Soccer representatives all cited the first-class facility as one of the most appealing factors of expanding to Toronto. In addition to MLS games, the facility will also be the premier venue at next summer's FIFA U-20 World Cup, hosting the championship game in one of soccer's top competitions.
While plans for the acquisition of the players that will actually make up Toronto FC have yet to be announced, there are already a few Canadians that are among the top performers in Major League Soccer. Most notably is Houston Dynamo midfielder Dwayne De Rosario, a finalist for the Honda MVP award last season. Canadian Soccer Association chief operating officer Kevan Pipe garnered great cheers from the locals in attendance by making an early push to acquire De Rosario's services.
