The 2022 MLS (Major League Soccer) Cup playoffs kick off this Saturday, October 15th with the New York Red Bulls hosting FC Cincinnati and Nashville SC visiting the LA Galaxy.
A total of 14 teams made the postseason as the top seven clubs in the Eastern and Western Conference will battle it out for the MLS Cup, with the final being played on November 5th. New York City FC enter the 27th edition of the MLS postseason as the defending cup champions with Los Angeles FC as this year’s Supporters’ Shield winners for finishing as the top team in the 34-game regular season.
The Philadelphia Union and Los Angeles FC receive a bye in the first playoff round as a reward for winning their respective conferences. The Union topped the Eastern Conference with 67 points while LAFC also had 67 points to win the West.
The first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs will see the 4th-seeded New York Red Bulls host 5th-seed FC Cincinnati while 3rd-seeded New York City hosts 6th-seeded Inter Miami CF and 2nd-seeded CF Montreal hosts 7th-seeded Orlando City.
The Philadelphia Union will enter the playoffs in the second round and will host the winner of the Red Bulls vs Cincinnati clash. Meanwhile, the winner of the New York vs Miami showdown will face the winner of the Montreal vs Orlando contest with the highest-seeded team always having home-field advantage.
Each playoff game is a one-off elimination match. If the score is level after 90 minutes the two teams will play two 15-minute halves of extra time to decide a winner. If the contest is still tied after extra time it will be decided by a penalty shootout.
In the Western Conference, the 4th-seeded LA Galaxy hosts 5th-seeded Nashville SC while 3rd-seeded FC Dallas hosts 6th-seeded Minnesota Utd and 2nd-seeded Austin FC hosts 7th-seeded Real Salt Lake.
Los Angeles FC enter the fray in the second round and will host the winner of the LA Galaxy vs Nashville match. Also, the winner of the FC Dallas vs Minnesota encounter will play the winner of the Austin vs Real Salt Lake battle.
The winners of these games will then meet in the Conference Finals between October 20th and 23rd with the victors heading to the MLS Cup Final on November 5th. The finalist who finished the regular-season with the most points will host the cup final. If Los Angeles FC and the Philadelphia Union happen to meet in the final, Los Angeles will host it as the two teams finished the season with the same number of points but Los Angeles had more wins.
Heading into this year’s MLS playoffs, the LA Galaxy hold the league record for most cup wins and final appearances as they have won the title five times and lost four. Real Salt Lake have one win and one loss while New York City has one win and no losses and the New York Red Bulls and FC Dallas have both appeared in one final and came out on the losing end. The other nine playoff teams this year have never reached an MLS Cup Final as of yet.
According to the bet365 oddsmakers, Los Angeles FC are the favorites to hoist the cup heading into the playoffs at +200. They’re followed by Philadelphia at +350, Montreal at +800, new York City at +900, Austin at +1100, the New York Red Bulls at +1400, Dallas and the LA Galaxy both at +1600, Cincinnati at +2800, Nashville, Miami and Minnesota all at +3300 with Orlando at +4000 and Real Salt Lake at +5000.
Remember, you can also wager on each individual playoff game at bet365 and also enjoy the live betting option.