The 26th February will see the return of live soccer action, with the new MLS season kicking off! There’s just over three weeks left until we’re able to watch & enjoy plenty of soccer – something we’ve not seen since December 11. Here’s everything you need to know about the upcoming MLS season!
A Brief Recap of Last Season
Before we get into the new season, we thought we should take a look back at what happened in last season’s action-packed MLS. There were plenty of major talking points, along with an extremely entertaining MLS Cup Final. With the regular season giving us plenty of exciting soccer for eight months of the year, we were given a huge amount of sports entertainment.
There were some extremely close encounters in the postseason, including both Eastern Conference semi-finals going to penalties. After finishing 4th in the east, New York City FC made it to the MLS Cup with a 2-1 win against the Philadelphia Union. Meanwhile, Portland Timbers progressed with a conference final 2-0 victory against Real Salt Lake.
In an extremely close clash, the MLS Cup final, held at Providence Park, came to an intense & exciting climax. NYCFC took the lead just before half-time, but a 94th minute equalizer from Felipe Mora took the game to extra time. With no other goals, the Cup was decided via a penalty shoot-out – NYCFC came out victorious 5-3.
Opening Weekend
The opening weekend of the new MLS season is fast approaching, and every franchise in the league will step onto the pitch for their first competitive league games of the new year. Now, the 27th season of the MLS will begin with a matchup between Philadelphia Union & Minnesota United. From 1pm EST, fans will be able to watch soccer for the rest of the day, with a number of other top matchups.
Columbus Crew vs Vancouver Whitecaps & LAFC vs Colorado Rapids follows the first fixture, and the highly-anticipated soccer season will continue for a significant amount of time. Saturday evening sees a cross-conference clash between Portland Timbers & New England Revolution – two of last year’s playoff teams.
Sunday’s fixtures kicks off with a Canadian rivalry, with Orlando City hosting CF Montreal. The reigning & defending MLS Champions NYCFC will kick off their campaign with a cross-conference battle, traveling to Los Angeles to face LA Galaxy. Who will come away with three points in the opening games?
New Franchise: Charlotte FC
Joining the Eastern Conference as the 28th team to compete in the MLS, Charlotte FC will be the newest franchise. Now, there will be 14 teams in either conference, following the introduction of Austin FC to the west last year.
Charlotte will begin their MLS journey with their first competitive game on Feb. 26 – a trip to DC United awaits for the new team. After that, Charlotte FC’s first home fixture at the Bank of America Stadium will be the following week, with LA Galaxy making the trip. How will the new team get on?
MLS Latest Betting Odds
Ready to place a bet on the upcoming MLS season? Think you already know who is going to win 2022’s MLS Cup? Well, fortunately for all you soccer punters, there are already a number of available US bookmakers offering MLS betting markets – along with some generous odds!
If you’re looking to find your preferred sports betting site, we recommend checking out our extensive bookmaker reviews over at CaptainGambling.com! There’s a wide range of online sportsbooks available in plenty of US States – find your favorite bookie today!
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