Major League Soccer has expanded from a 10-team league in 1996 into one of North America’s largest professional sports leagues. By 2026, Major League Soccer will have 30 clubs, evenly divided between the Eastern and Western Conferences. The teams will battle for the MLS Cup and a range of domestic and international titles.
The structure can be confusing for new fans, as MLS has a regular season, the Supporters’ Shield, the MLS Cup playoffs, Leagues Cup, U.S. Open Cup and Concacaf Champions Cup. This MLS guide explains how those competitions fit together, how teams qualify for the postseason and what each trophy means.
What Is Major League Soccer?
Major League Soccer is the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. The league was established in 1996 and has grown significantly over the past decade. The 2026 season will see 30 clubs. Unlike many European leagues, where the overall champion is simply the team that finishes first in the regular-season standings, MLS decides its champion through the MLS Cup Playoffs. Meanwhile, the regular season has its own major prize. The Supporters’ Shield goes to the team with the best record in the league.
The 30 MLS Teams in 2026
Each conference has 15 teams in the league. MLS has equalized the conferences with the same number of clubs but the league’s schedule guaranties teams won’t play every opponent in the regular season.
Eastern Conference
The Eastern Conference consists of:
- Atlanta United
- Charlotte FC
- Chicago Fire
- FC Cincinnati
- Columbus Crew
- D.C. United
- Inter Miami
- CF Montréal
- Nashville SC
- New England Revolution
- New York City FC
- Orlando City
- Philadelphia Union
- Red Bull New York
- Toronto FC
Western Conference
The Western Conference includes:
- Austin FC
- Colorado Rapids
- FC Dallas
- Houston Dynamo
- LAFC
- LA Galaxy
- Minnesota United
- Portland Timbers
- Real Salt Lake
- St. Louis CITY SC
- San Diego FC
- San Jose Earthquakes
- Seattle Sounders
- Sporting Kansas City
- Vancouver Whitecaps
How the MLS Regular Season Works
In Major League Soccer, all 30 teams play 34 regular-season matches, with 17 at home and 17 away. Conference foes are played twice, once at home and once away, for a total of 28 matches. Each club then plays six different opponents from the other conference, making up the remaining six games.
In terms of scoring, teams receive three points for a win, one point for a draw and no points for a loss. At the end of the regular season teams are ranked by points within their conference. Decision Day refers to the last regular season matchday where the playoff field and final seeding is decided.
What Is the Supporters’ Shield?
The Supporters’ Shield is awarded to the team with the best regular season record in MLS. It’s not the MLS Cup. The Shield is awarded to the team with the best regular season record, and the winner of the postseason tournament is awarded the MLS Cup.
It’s an important distinction in measuring success in the MLS. A club can win the Supporters’ Shield, finish atop the regular-season standings and not win MLS Cup.
Supporters’ Shield standings can give fans and bettors a useful picture of regular-season form. Understanding how sports betting odds move can also help readers see how team performance, injuries and market sentiment affect prices throughout the season.
How the MLS Playoffs Work
MLS playoffs are broken down into conferences. The top seven teams in each conference automatically qualify for Round One of the 2026 season. The eighth- and ninth-place teams face off in a one-game Wild Card contest. The winners of each Wild Card game will face the No. 1 seed in their respective conference. So, that means 18 clubs make the post-season initially, but only 16 actually play the first round, which is best-of-three.
MLS Wild Card Matches
The No. 8 and No. 9 seeds in each conference meet once. The game is played by the higher seed. There’s no extra time in the Wild Card round. If the score is tied after 90 minutes, the winner is determined on penalties.
Round One: Best-of-Three Series
The next step is unusual for most major soccer tournaments, as it is a best-of-three format. The top seed in the conference will play the winner of the Wild Card match, while the other matchups are No. 2 vs. No. 7, No. 3 vs. No. 6 and No. 4 vs. No. 5.
In the series, Game 1 is hosted by the higher seed, while Game 2 is hosted by the lower seed. Game 3, if necessary, returns to the higher seed. First team to win 2 matches progresses. There must be a winner in every game, so drawn matches go directly to penalty shootouts, not extra time.
Conference Semifinals
Round One will leave four teams per conference. The Conference Semifinals will revert to a traditional single-elimination format. The higher seed hosts and if a match is tied it goes to two 15-minute overtime periods and if needed a penalty shootout.
Conference Finals
Conference Finals are single-elimination contests too. The remaining highest seed plays the remaining lowest seed in each conference. The winners become the two finalists for the MLS Cup.
MLS Cup Playoffs
The MLS Cup is a single championship match between the winners of the Eastern and Western Conferences. The match is played at the home ground of the higher seed in the Supporters’ Shield standings. If they’re level after 90 minutes, it goes to extra time and possibly penalties. The MLS Cup will be played on Dec. 18, 2026.
What Is the Leagues Cup?
The Leagues Cup isn’t the MLS playoffs, but a tournament that includes clubs from Major League Soccer and Mexico’s Liga MX. The 2026 tournament will include 36 teams (18 MLS clubs and all 18 Liga MX clubs). The competition will be played after the 2026 FIFA World Cup with Phase One starting on August 4 and the final scheduled for September 6.
The 18 MLS entrants are the top nine teams from each conference from the previous MLS season. In Phase One, MLS and Liga MX clubs will play three games against clubs from the other league. After that, the top four sides from each league progress to the knockout round.
The quarterfinals, semifinals and final are knockout matches. The top three teams will qualify for the next year’s Concacaf Champions Cup, and the Leagues Cup champion will get a bye into the Round of 16.
What Is the U.S. Open Cup?
The Lamar Hunt US Open Cup is the US’ domestic knockout tournament, and is separate from the MLS postseason. The Open Cup is distinct from the MLS Cup, which is exclusive to MLS clubs, as it unites professional and lower division American soccer clubs. This gives the chance for teams from different tiers to face each other in a traditional knock-out competition.
Sixteen MLS clubs took part in the 2026 U.S. Open Cup. There were 80 clubs total with MLS teams entering in the Round of 32. The winner advances to the 2027 Concacaf Champions Cup. The 2026 tournament has been reduced to seven rounds due to the scheduling of the FIFA World Cup.
What Is the Concacaf Champions Cup?
The Concacaf Champions Cup is a premier club competition in North America, Central America and the Caribbean. MLS clubs qualify through a variety of avenues including MLS performance, MLS Cup, the U.S. Open Cup, Leagues Cup and other qualifying spots.
Nine MLS clubs participated in the 2026 Concacaf Champions Cup. A total of 27 clubs competed in the tournament. The winners qualified for the 2026 FIFA Intercontinental Cup and the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup. This tournament is a particularly important competition because it allows MLS teams to play against strong Liga MX and other Concacaf league teams in meaningful continental matches.
MLS Cup vs Supporters’ Shield vs Leagues Cup
These competitions can be confusing for new fans, but each has a different purpose.
| Competition | What it decides | Teams involved |
| MLS regular season | League standings | All MLS clubs |
| Supporters’ Shield | Best regular-season record | All MLS clubs |
| MLS Cup | MLS champion | Qualified MLS clubs |
| Leagues Cup | Regional club champion | MLS + Liga MX |
| U.S. Open Cup | U.S. domestic cup winner | U.S. clubs from multiple levels |
| Concacaf Champions Cup | Regional continental champion | Clubs from Concacaf nations |
Readers interested in wagering on MLS matches can explore our broader sportsbook guides and betting resources before comparing markets or odds.
