Okay we all have our own ideas about the playoffs and how they should be ran. I would like to see some changes. What would like to see here is what I think. I like to 6-8 teams get in if 6 we would reward the top two teams with a bye in the first round. First Round 1 and 2 get a bye 3-4 and 5-6 best out of three but no ties, and no overtime, with pk's. team with better reg. season gets homefield adv. Second Round Same as first round. Final round should be home and home or single game like it is? If 8 teams the same but no bye in the first round. What do you think?
There's a problem as I see it with best of three series: stadia availability. Next year, with 12 clubs, eight of the league's clubs have to share stadia with college and NFL pointyball, and now DCU have to share RFK with a baseball team. It's much easier to schedule for one playoff match per round (for the higher seeded clubs) as opposed to two. Also, being a purist and traditionalist, I'm very partial to a one match final.
Here's an idea that appeals to me, but it's contingent upon MLS having 14 or 16 clubs, going to a single table, and most clubs - if not all - having their own stadia: Take the top eight clubs and split them up into two groups. For example, seeds 1,3,5 and 7 in one group and seeds 2,4,6 and 8 in the other. Each club would play six matches, just as in the group phases of the European Champion's League. The top two finishers in each group going on to the MLS Cup Final Four, then hold a semifinal doubleheader on a Wednesday/Thursday, then the MLS Cup Final on a Saturday/Sunday. Hold the Final Four in one city - just like the NCAA Basketball Tournament does it - and turn the whole damn thing into a big festival, with the Supprter's Summit, Awards Banquet, and a few other footie related things sandwiched in between.
Think of it this way. There is a single table already. The Supporters Shield. And just like the EPL, there is a League Cup, but the cup is decided after the season, instead of during. So 2 or more teams are eliminated before the Cup Competition. As the Sheild winner, you can claim the best record over the season. As the Cup winner, you can claim a tourney win. Leave it like it is. 8 in the Cup playoff next year, based on league position. Thx, Jay!
Only problem w/ your comment is that the Expos are not going to be anywhere near good enough to be playing in October for a very long time, and by then, D.C. United will likely have Poplar Point. I concur. Leave it like it is now. And to me at lfast, MLS CUP is by far the more prestigious between it and the Supporters Shield.