Landon Donovan’s outburst when MLS stars flew Southwest: “If we want to be Major League Soccer, not minor league soccer...”

When it comes to team-travel standards, Major League Soccer still has ground to make up on other top competitions in North America. But in recent seasons, the league has sought to improve conditions which, 10 years ago, led a Hall of Fame coach to declare himself “embarrassed” for MLS.

In other major leagues in U.S. men’s sport - basketball’s NBA, football’s NFL and baseball’s MLB - charter travel has long been the standard mode of transportation for teams flying to road games. Yet in MLS, a league founded in 1996, it is only in the current decade that there has been a significant effort to phase out the use of commercial aviation.

How often do MLS teams fly charter in 2026?

Starting six years ago, MLS’s collective bargaining agreement with the players’ union, the MLSPA, introduced mandatory charter travel to regular-season games for eight “legs of flights” each year. Under the CBA, that number has then increased periodically, up to 16 legs this season. In 2027, the final year of the current agreement’s duration, that figure rises again, to 18.

If a team uses direct charter flights for its outgoing and return travel to an away game, that counts as two legs. So, as things stand, MLS players get a guaranteed eight regular-season matches with direct charter travel - out of a total of 17 road games - if it is used in both directions. The present CBA also requires charter flights for all playoff games, and for all CONCACAF Champions Cup matches played outside of the U.S. or Canada.

What are the advantages of charter flights?

For elite sports clubs, the benefits of charter flights over commercial aviation are multiple. Most notably, teams can fly to their own schedule, rather than that of the airline. This, for example, allows players to return home right after a game rather than, potentially, having to wait until the following day. In turn, players’ recuperation time is maximized, and team travel fits better around practice schedules.

“Our primary reason for going for charters was to just improve the game,” Ethan Finlay, then a player for MLS team Minnesota United, said after the signing of 2020’s CBA. “To be able to get players home at the end of a night after a game so that you don’t lose a day, you can have a recovery day.”

In top-level sport, the privacy and security of charter travel is also among its major advantages. As they make trips which, according to one estimate, can average over 1,000 miles each way per road game in MLS, recognizable sports stars avoid the stress and strain of unwanted attention from the public.

“I try to keep it as quiet as possible”

Furthermore, players and coaches highlight the impact on MLS’ prestige when elite soccer players are seen sitting elbow-to-elbow with regular travellers on commercial flights. In 2016, at a time when the CBA listed “no obligation” for teams to provide any charter travel, American soccer legend Landon Donovan, then a player for Los Angeles Galaxy, spoke of the importance of the “perception” and “image” factor.

In an interview with the L.A. Times’ Kevin Baxter, Donovan said: “We’re on a Southwest flight to Kansas City and a lady in front of us said, ‘Why are you guys flying Southwest?’” The now-retired forward, who lifted six MLS Cups during a stellar, 20-year playing career, concluded: “if we want to be Major League Soccer, not minor league soccer, and we want to be like the other sports, eventually we have to get there.”

Bruce Arena, then Donovan’s Galaxy boss, went further. “I’m embarrassed that we travel that way,” the five-time MLS winner, one of the U.S.’s greatest soccer coaches, told Baxter. “I don’t think it helps the reputation of our league. I try to keep it as quiet as possible.”

Related stories

Leagues Cup

We've got Leagues Cup fever

Leagues Cup

Monterrey the Blaugrana bogeyman again

Get closer to the game! Whether you like your soccer of the European variety or that on this side of the pond, our AS USA app has it all. Dive into live coverage, expert insights, breaking news, exclusive videos, and more. Plus, stay updated on NFL, NBA and all other big sports stories as well as the latest in current affairs and entertainment. Download now for all-access coverage, right at your fingertips – anytime, anywhere.

And there’s more: check out our TikTok and Instagram reels for bite-sized visual takes on all the biggest soccer news and insights.