There's always the worry of early season ramp-up in Champions League but I think going into next year this is the most confident I've ever been that a MLS team should win it with all the teams involved.
Thomas Williams was traded by Orlando to Nashville. Another Orlando youth product that is highly thought of that similar to Freeman going into last year just needs an opportunity
That's the kind of good domestic signing that Nashville has consistently made. Let's see how this one goes..................
The last 3 years in the Leagues Cup has been pretty dominated by MLS. Liga MX is still taking the CONCACAF Champions Cup every year (save Seattle 2022) but it will be interesting to see if things change when MLS moves to a Euro schedule. Right now MLS Teams go into that competition completely cold.
I think the schedule change will help but CCC is still played at every club's stadium while League's Cup is only in MLS. Is there any thought to changing LC so that it also is hosted in both countries? At a certain point the extra money won't be enough to cover for MLS winning more often and hurt Liga MX's reputation among their fans.
No, MLS would have had a tenth if Vancouver had not been as good this year, as them getting in as Western Conference winners gave their Canadian Cup spot to a CPL team. Also, if Toronto or Montreal had made the Canadian Cup finals, that also could have done that.
Of course, Miami finished 3rd in the East. Theyr'e having to make multiple changes to their starting XI as Busquets, Jordi Alba, etc. won't be there. We'll see. Six MLS clubs finished bunched with similar amounts of points. Philly, Cincy, Miami, San Diego, Vancouver, and LAFC. All in the CCC. We're sending a strong group of clubs to that event, any one whom has it in them to make a deep run. It was Vancouver that made the final this past season after eliminating Miami. [Seattle is also in it as the Leagues Cup winner, and they have what it takes too. Nashville as USOC champion.]
I was just thinking about how a poster got mad at me in preseason for rightfully disagreeing with a ridiculous take. LOL Messi is so skilled that it overshadows how physically gifted he is. A lesser player would be known for speed and agility.
Match fitness and elevation are huge in CCC. The Sounders were the better team in the Seattle leg against Cruz Azul but not sharp enough to make it count. They had injuries and dead legs back in CDMX in the second leg. Then when CA visited in the summer, Seattle murdered them. I didn’t think CA was 3 goal better than Seattle in Mexico or that Seattle is 6 goals better in Seattle. They’re pretty evenly matched, which is to say, I don’t think Liga Mx teams have much advantage besides depth these days. A healthy MLS team can play with any of them.
Don't know, either. By 'regulation', any OT would've been included in the record I posted, however. I got the scores from Wikipedia.
The Leagues Cup numbers should get a discount. When MLS starts winning CCC finals in Mexico, we can start talking about being the best in Conca.
I think the gap is clearly closing, but Liga MX still edges it. There's no way we can argue it otherwise. They play early Champions League, Europa League matches in Europe too. Particularly critical qualifiers before some club seasons have even started. We can't just discount early season results. Results are results. There aren't actually as many MLS versus Liga MX series as you'd want in the CCC. Those home and away series tell me more than the Leagues Cup. MLS clubs actually knocked off a bunch of MLS clubs. MLS on MLS crime. Most MLS clubs weren't actually eliminated by Liga MX clubs. Two of our better entrants, Columbus and Miami were ousted by MLS clubs. The Rapids and SKC were too. RSL was eliminated by Herediano of Costa Rica. How many victories home or away did MLS clubs have over Liga MX in CCC this year? The answer is zero. Let me repeat that. The answer is zero. Whitecaps 1 Monterrey 1 Monterrey 2 Whitecaps 2 [Vancouver advances on away goals] Seattle 0 Cruz Azul 0 Cruz Azul 4 Seattle 1 Cincinnati 1 Tigres 1 Tigres 3 Cincinnati 1 Galaxy 0 Tigres 0 Tigres 3 Galaxy 2 Vancouver 1 Pumas 1 Pumas 2 Vancouver 2 [Vancouver advances again on away goals.] Cruz Azul 5 Vancouver 0 The gap is closing. But we can't say MLS is even with LIga MX if we didn't have A SINGLE VICTORY over LIga MX in our continental championship. A bunch of home draws that we think of as moral victories. Only one team advanced from a head to head matchup with LIga MX. That was Vancouver twice on away goals. Vancouver ended up being one of the best teams in the league in 2025. I personally like the Leagues Cup, but if all of the games are played at home.................that only tells part of the story with regards to league strength for MLS. All of the LIga MX versus MLS quarterfinals on home soil were air tight. Two advancements from MLS on penalties after 0-0 draws AT HOME.
To be fair to the Leagues Cup, a lot of those games are played at neutral venues. Chivas and Club America haven’t faced a hostile environment yet. The difference between the leagues is so small in either direction as to be meaningless for USMNT scouting purposes to me.If you’re a top Liga MX player, that’s as good to me as a top Championship player or MLS or Netherlands etc.
The big difference is the Mexican teams are in mid season form and the MLS teams aren't. It's not like both are in early season so yes it's a big advantage. I'll wait for the new MLS season change and see how it looks a few years into that. Then the teams will be on more even footing in form. Will MLS teams then still have trouble with altitude? I suspect altitude will always hinder but even form will result in a few MLS teams winning it.