MLS commissioner Don Garber says the league is considering several scheduling adjustments as the Montreal Impact join in 2012 as the 19th franchise.

On the agenda for Friday's competition committee meeting is whether the teams should stick with 34 regular-season games or expand to 36. Balanced scheduling is likely impossible, so the group also will discuss possible imbalanced scenarios.

“It will be impossible to be balanced at 20 or 22 (teams),” Garber said via the league's website. “We’re going to go over competition format, playoffs structure, our schedule (and) how we deal with the breaks with (World Cup) qualifying next year.

“We’re getting it right, but we still recognize we’re young. The NFL doesn’t have to worry about how many games they have and what’s their season because they’ve been that way for 100 years. We’re still kind of evolving.”

The league also has to schedule around FIFA international playing dates and work in CONCACAF Gold Cup, U.S. Open Cup and other competitions into the regular season. The league also expanded the playoffs to 10 teams this season, and Garber said that format is likely to remain in place.

“It would be great not to play at all on FIFA days,” Garber said. “It would be great for FIFA, as the European club associations have asked for reductions of international competition days, particularly friendlies; it would be great if we had fewer days our guys are called away. Until that happens, we’ll have to manage through it with our shorter schedule.”