The playoff draw was finalized on Saturday, October 18th, also known as “Decision Day”. Former 2025 MLS Cup champion LA Galaxy, and runner-up New York Red Bulls failed to qualify. Philadelphia Union’s astonishing season earned them the Supporters’ Shield with a shocking 66 points, and clinching first place in the Eastern Conference with a few games left in the season, while new team San Diego FC finished first in the Western Conference for their brilliant season.
A total of 18 teams from both the United States and Canada qualified for the playoffs including nine teams from the East: Philadelphia Union, FC Cincinnati, Inter Miami CF, Charlotte FC, New York City FC, Nashville SC, Columbus Crew, Chicago Fire FC, and Orlando City SC, and nine teams from the West: San Diego FC, Vancouver Whitecaps FC, Los Angeles FC, Minnesota United FC, Seattle Sounders FC, Austin FC, FC Dallas, Portland Timbers, and Real Salt Lake.
How Are The 2025 MLS Playoffs Formatted?
The format for the 2025 playoffs consists of five rounds of play in six weeks, leading up to the final to crown the MLS Audi Cup Champion. The playoffs start with the Wildcard Round, consisting of two matches in which the eighth seed from both leagues plays the ninth seed from their league. The next round, Round One, is the first formal round of the playoffs, consisting of eight best-of-three matches. After Round One, the winning teams will play in the Conference Semifinals, Conference Finals, and then the MLS 2025 Audi Cup Final, with a two week break for the FIFA International Matches.
Teams and Players To Watch For
The 2025 season brought out star teams and players to watch for. First year club San Diego FC gave an amazing performance this season with 19 wins, led by breakout stars Anders Dreyer, Hirving Lozano, and the United States own Luca de la Torre. The Philadelphia Union led the East with an outstanding season of 20 wins, led by Tai Baribo, Kai Wagner, and Union homegrown Quinn Sullivan.
Although arriving mid season, the Whitecaps acquired Germany’s most decorated footballer, 35-year-old Thomas Müller from FC Bayern München in Germany. Müller’s age does not define him as he has scored 8 goals in 9 matches for the club. Inter Miami’s stars are not to be counted out in the playoffs as FC Barcelona stars Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets, and Jordi Alba look for one last trophy to conclude their historic journey together. Argentinian star Rodrigo de Paul was acquired from Spanish super club Atlético Madrid to Inter Miami this past summer on loan, but since Rodrigo has arrived, he has made a massive impact in the midfield that could be the difference between winning and losing in the playoffs. LAFC acquired Premier League Golden Boot Winner Son Heung-min from Tottenham Hotspurs midsummer who instantly made an impact in the team’s attack and set pieces. FC Cincinnati’s major contributor Evander can’t be forgotten with eighteen goals this past season.
Attraction to the Game in 2025
These stars over the course of the 2025 season attracted 3.7 million match viewers per week, which is a 29 percent increase in viewership from the 2024 season. Attendance at matches has increased from last season with an attendance of 11.2 million fans per week, averaging 20,000 fans per match (MLS Communications, 2025).
I interviewed Senior Vice President of Media and Game Schedule Management for Major League Soccer, Brad Pursel, who has worked in the MLS for around 30 years. Pursel gave good insight into the league’s playoff format and how the league will adapt to events in the coming years.
Changing the Calendar
The MLS and Liga MX, Mexico’s professional soccer league, are two of the only professional leagues to play a spring-to-fall calendar, conflicting with the FIFA international calendar, which interferes with this year’s playoffs. “The league has been contemplating changing their calendar to align with the FIFA international calendar much like the leagues in Europe play, and if they did, the playoffs would switch from the winter/fall to May, which would be a terrific spot to host the postseason”, says Pursel. The switching of seasons would manage the loss of players the clubs already receive and provide fans with better weather conditions that could increase the amount of fans at playoff matches.
Extra-Time and Penalty Rules
The first full round of playoffs has been met with much criticism over the years. Implemented three years ago in 2023 were penalty and extra-time rules, explaining that Round One and Wildcard matches will receive extra-time if tied after 90 minutes played, including overtime. Pursel explained that this is because “extra time would be a significant toll on the players” and that the amount of minutes consecutively played could increase injury risk.
Best-Of-Three Matches
Also implemented in 2023 was best-of-three matches for Round One. Before, best-of-three matches were previously played as two-game matches with an aggregate score between both matches. Pursel and the MLS observed that the matches “were more defensive, and not as offensive and energetic”, so they used the fan input to decide to switch formats.
Carding on Decision Day
There is currently circulation around carding on decision day, considering the amount of players receiving red cards. Receiving a red card means that the player shown the card will serve a one match suspension for their respective team. On Decision Day 2025, this rule impacted Charlotte’s Wilfried Zaha and Vancouver’s Mathías Laborda, both shown a red card. The rule currently stands as yellow cards are not carried over from regular season play, but the red card is. Pursel’s reasoning for this is that an “accumulation of yellow cards is not as egregious as if you get a red card on decision day”.
How Will The MLS Adapt To The 2026 World Cup?
Although not impacting this year’s playoffs, Pursel gave new insight into next summer’s World Cup and how the MLS will adapt.
The 2026 World Cup, hosted across the United States, Mexico, and Canada, occurs during the middle of the 2026 MLS season, impacting the league’s dynamic. To minimize the disruption caused by the World Cup, the MLS has implemented a strategic plan. Pursel explained that “the league is going to take a 53-day break from when the players get released to their World Cup teams, and there will be no regular season games until after the World Cup Semifinals. A select five or six matches will restart between the semifinals and final. After the World Cup Final, the league will fully resume the season on July 22nd”. The decision highlights the league’s efforts to balance both domestic competition and international commitments, ensuring players can represent their countries. The 2026 World Cup will “push the end of the regular season later, and therefore the playoffs will take place later next season”.
The 2026 World Cup impact could change the league’s format for further years, bringing more stars along the lines of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Thomas Müller, and Son Heung-min.
