COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Major League Soccer finalized which cup competitions its 30 clubs will play in as the league has set new rules for how teams qualify for North American tournaments.
For the next two seasons, the league will follow new guidelines as to how clubs will qualify for the Leagues Cup (July 29-Aug. 31) and U.S. Open Cup.
The Leagues Cup was introduced in 2023 with the first two iterations featuring every MLS club and Mexican league team in the mid-summer tournament. The Columbus Crew won last season’s Leagues Cup with a 3-1 victory in the final over Los Angeles FC at Lower.com Field.
For 2025, only 18 MLS clubs will play in the Leagues Cup alongside all 18 Liga MX teams. Qualification will be determined by the conference standings from the previous regular season. The top nine teams from the Eastern Conference and top nine from the Western Conference will qualify. That puts the Crew into the tournament but a notable omission is the Philadelphia Union, who finished fourth in last year’s Leagues Cup but finished 12th in the East standings.
MLS will have 16 clubs compete in the U.S. Open Cup, the oldest soccer tournament in the U.S. To qualify, each U.S.-based MLS team must not be competing in the Leagues Cup and CONCACAF Champions Cup. After that criteria is met, the remaining teams are decided by last season’s overall regular season standings. With this new criteria, LAFC will not defend its 2024 U.S. Open Cup title.
Additionally, 10 MLS NEXT Pro developmental teams will participate, so Crew 2 will play in the U.S. Open Cup for the first time. MLS will re-evaluate this process for the 2027 season.
Leagues Cup participants (18 MLS clubs)
- Atlanta United
- Charlotte FC
- FC Cincinnati
- Colorado Rapids
- Columbus Crew
- Houston Dynamo
- Los Angeles FC
- LA Galaxy
- Inter Miami
- Minnesota United
- CF Montreal
- New York City FC
- New York Red Bulls
- Orlando City
- Portland Timbers
- Real Salt Lake
- San Diego FC (Replaces Vancouver Whitecaps who compete in CONCACAF Champions Cup and Canadian Championship)
- Seattle Sounders
U.S. Open Cup participants (16 MLS clubs)
- Austin FC
- Charlotte FC
- Chicago Fire
- FC Dallas
- D.C. United
- Houston Dynamo
- Minnesota United
- Nashville SC
- New England Revolution
- New York City FC
- New York Red Bulls
- Orlando City
- Philadelphia Union
- Portland Timbers
- San Jose Earthquakes
- St. Louis CITY SC
- Carolina Core FC (MLS NEXT Pro)
- Chattanooga FC (MLS NEXT Pro)
- Columbus Crew 2 (MLS NEXT Pro)
- FC Cincinnati 2 (MLS NEXT Pro)
- Inter Miami CF II (MLS NEXT Pro)
- LAFC 2 (MLS NEXT Pro)
- Real Monarchs (MLS NEXT Pro)
- Sporting KC II (MLS NEXT Pro)
- Tacoma Defiance (MLS NEXT Pro)
- Ventura County FC (MLS NEXT Pro)
The Black & Gold begin the 2025 MLS season on Feb. 22 when they host the Chicago Fire at 7:30 p.m. from Lower.com Field. Columbus will also play in the CONCACAF Champions Cup again, a tournament they finished as runners-up in last season. The Crew will play on the road at Los Angeles FC or the Colorado Rapids in the first leg of the Champions Cup round of 16 on Mar. 4.
