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Major League Soccer has officially revealed the schedule for the 2026 MLS Cup Playoffs, along with the date for MLS Cup, which will take place on Friday, December 18. The championship match will be played in primetime and broadcast across Apple TV, FOX, TSN, and RDS.
The postseason will begin shortly after the regular season concludes with MLS Decision Day on November 7. Following a short break for the international window, playoff action kicks off on November 18 and will run across four weeks before culminating in the league’s championship match in mid-December.
Wild Card Round
The playoffs will open with the Wild Card matches on November 18, where the No. 8 and No. 9 teams in each conference will face off in a single-elimination game. The higher-seeded team will host the match, with the winner advancing to the first round to face the conference’s top seed.
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Round One – Best of Three
Round One begins on November 20 and runs through December 2, featuring the now-familiar best-of-three series format. The top seven teams in each conference automatically qualify, joined by the two Wild Card winners. Every team in this round will host at least one playoff match, with the higher seed hosting the first and (if necessary) third game of the series.
Conference Semifinals and Finals
After the opening round, the playoffs shift to single-elimination. The Conference Semifinals will take place on December 5–6, followed by the Conference Finals on December 11–12. As always, the team with the better regular-season record will host each matchup.
MLS Cup
The road to the championship ends on December 18 when the finalists meet in MLS Cup. Hosting rights will be awarded to whichever team finished higher in the MLS Supporters’ Shield standings during the regular season.
The 2026 final will also mark the last MLS Cup played in December before the league transitions to its upcoming fall-to-spring calendar format.
In addition to lifting the trophy, the champion will earn a major competitive advantage — a direct Round of 16 berth in the CONCACAF Champions Cup and a spot in the 2027 Campeones Cup against the Liga MX champion.
For San Diego FC, the new playoff timeline provides a clear target as the club continues building toward its postseason ambitions in just its second season.
