The MLS playoffs format for 2024 has some unique features, balancing single-elimination and best-of-three rounds to create a knockout system. Here’s an overview of the structure:
Playoffs for the 2024 MLS Cup started with the wild card round in late October, with the conference semifinals now almost set in stone.
Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami (2.30) is one of several teams still in the running to win the MLS Cup, but first, they have to win the Eastern Conference.
Easybet has put together a guide on how the MLS Cup playoffs work. The MLS Cup final will take place on 7 December 2024. By the time we get there, it will be best for any soccer betting enthusiasts to understand the format of the MLS Cup playoffs.
1. Wild Card Matches
- The two lowest seeds in each conference (8th and 9th) face off in a single-elimination “wild card” game.
- Winners from these matches advance to the first round of the playoffs.
2. First Round: Best-of-Three Series
- The first round features the top seven seeds and the wild card winners in each conference.
- This round is played as a best-of-three series, with each game ending in a winner (no draws allowed).
- The higher seed hosts the first and, if necessary, the third game.
- The first team to win two games moves on to the next round.
3. Conference Semifinals and Finals: Single-Elimination
- The teams that make it through the best-of-three first round advance to the single-elimination Conference Semifinals.
- Higher-seeded teams host each match in this round.
- Winners of the Conference Semifinals move on to the Conference Finals, also single elimination.
4. MLS Cup Final
- The winners of the Eastern and Western Conference Finals face off in the MLS Cup Final.
- This is a one-off, single-elimination game, hosted by the team with the better regular-season record.
- The winner is crowned MLS champion for the season.
The combination of series and single-elimination games adds a mix of high-stakes single games and more forgiving multi-game series, which can change how teams approach each stage.
