Under Bradley, the 2006 season saw a major turnaround for Chivas USA. On November 23, 2005, former MLS Coach of the Year Bob Bradley became Chivas USA's third head coach, replacing Hans Westerhof. After a disappointing season, Westerhof did not return to coach the team in 2006. On June 3, 2005, Hans Westerhof was named Chivas USA's second head coach. After a 1–8–1 start (their sole win coming against fellow expansion club Real Salt Lake), Thomas Rongen was named Chivas USA's sporting director and assistant coach Javier Ledesma became the club's interim head coach. United on April 2, 2005, under the guidance of Chivas USA's first head coach Thomas Rongen. In 2005, Chivas USA kicked off its inaugural season in Major League Soccer at The Home Depot Center with a 2–0 loss to then MLS Cup Champions D.C. On August 2, 2004, Major League Soccer announced that Chivas USA would share The Home Depot Center in Carson with the Galaxy, and begin play in 2005 as the league's eleventh team. The team, named "Chivas USA", would be affiliated with Chivas and play in either Los Angeles or San Diego beginning in the 2005 season.
In June 2003, the league announced that the 2003 MLS All-Star Game would be played against Chivas and that Vergara was interested in purchasing an expansion team. Mexican businessman Jorge Vergara took ownership of the struggling Chivas de Guadalajara in 2002 and sought to use the rejuvenated club to establish an international brand.
The club ceased operations after the 2014 regular season, and is currently the most recent major professional North American soccer team to fold. In 2014, MLS purchased the club from Vergara with plans to sell to new owners. The club was originally owned by Antonio Cue and Jorge Vergara, who also owned C.D. Guadalajara.Ĭhivas USA played its home games at the StubHub Center in Carson, which it shared with its rival, the LA Galaxy.
Chiva is Latin American Spanish for " goat", seen as a tough and resilient animal in Mexico, and is the nickname of C.D. Guadalajara, one of the most widely supported and successful teams in Mexico. Chivas USA was intended to be seen as a "little brother" to its parent club C.D. The club was the eleventh MLS team upon its entry into the league in 2004. Guadalajara, sharing common ownership and branding. The club played from 2005 to 2014 in Major League Soccer (MLS) and was a subsidiary of Mexican club C.D. Chivas USA (pronounced CHEE-vahs) was an American professional soccer team based in the Los Angeles suburb of Carson, California.