UPDATE: The times they are a changin', oh the times they are a changin'. Since this article was originally published, Nashville SC has withdrawn from the tournament due to a large number of positive COVID-19 tests. As a result of this, their original first opponent in the tournament, Chicago Fire, have moved from Group A to Group B. This makes it so that each group will now have exactly four teams in each and the top two from each group plus the four best third place teams will make the knockout rounds. Down below I have updated my takes for the two groups impacted (Groups A & B) and the schedule.
There have been plenty of additional negatives heading into this World Cup-style tournament. In addition to the infections among players and tensions over the CBA negotiations, both the reigning MVP (Carlos Vela) and Defender of the Year (Ike Opara) have opted out of the tournament over concerns of the virus and nagging injuries. Yet there are still plenty of positives. First being the fact that the league is returning and trying to salvage something from an impossible scenario. The second being them introducing a fun style of tournament based on the World Cup. Another positive is that they are trying out plenty of unique broadcast options to test them for when things return to normal. Below you'll find an explanation of the format, previews of each individual group, and a schedule of the event.
Format
The MLS Is Back Tournament is, of course, modeled after the World Cup tournament. Teams were drawn into six different groups featuring members of their same conference. Each group (except for Group A, which features six teams) consists of four teams. Teams play three games against their own group, with the teams with the best results advancing to a sixteen-team knockout tournament. The top two teams from Groups B-F and the top three from Group A will automatically advance to the knockout rounds. Additionally, the three best third-place teams (or fourth-place team from Group A) also advances to the knockouts. Simple enough, right?
Group A - Eastern
Teams - Inter Miami CF, New York City FC, Orlando City FC, Philadelphia Union
What to Watch For? - We've only just gotten underway and things have already been crazy with Group A. They've had not one but two teams exit the group. Nashville SC had to exit the tournament due to concerns over excessive positive Coronavirus tests. As a result, Chicago Fire has moved to Group B to even things out. On the field, the first two match-days saw two one-goal games that featured the first match between the Florida teams and the first 9 AM match between the two teams from former US Capitals.
Best Group Match-Up? - Inter Miami CF vs Orlando City FC - Wednesday July 8th @ 8 PM on ESPN - While I firmly believe that the most critical game for this group's competition will be Philly vs NYCFC, the most interesting match-up will be Inter Miami vs Orlando City due to it being the very first match in the tournament. This is an important match to understand how seriously the players will take this and how the atmosphere will be for this thing. That's not even mentioning that this is the very first time the in-state rivals will face one another.
Who's Qualifying For The Knock-Outs? - Philadelphia Union and NYCFC - NYCFC and Philly are easily the most talented teams. If I was going to pick one as the one to top the tournament, I'd pick Philly based on the continuity of the roster and coaching staff.
Group B - Western
Teams - Chicago Fire, San Jose Earthquakes, Seattle Sounders, Vancouver Whitecaps
What to Watch For? - This should be an interesting group. Thanks to Dallas and Nashville withdrawing from the tournament, this group has had the late addition of the Chicago Fire. Still, you get a Cascadia Cup rivalry between Seattle and Vancouver and one of the more surprising teams of last year with San Jose. The Fire are an absolute mystery. After announcing a move from the suburbs back to Soldier Field in Chicago proper, the Fire underwent a questionable rebrand and waited until deep into the off-season to fire a coach or make any major roster moves.
Best Group Match-Up? - Seattle Sounders vs Vancouver Whitecaps - Monday July 20th @ 10:30 PM on ESPN - This group's slim pickings right now thanks to FC Dallas departing the tournament leaving this group with only three games to pick from. So naturally, this left us with this Cascadia Cup match-up taking center stage.
Who's Qualifying For The Knock-Outs? - Seattle Sounders and San Jose Earthquakes - With only three teams in the group, I am guaranteed to at least get one of these right. Seattle is obviously the reigning MLS Cup champ and didn't lose a ton from the previous season. San Jose was surprisingly good last season, so I think they might continue that in this tournament.
Group C - Eastern
Teams - D.C. United, Montreal Impact, New England Revolution, Toronto FC
What to Watch For? - It's the CAmerican Cup in Group C. In Group C, you can see the team from the national capital, the team named after the American Revolutionary War, and the two most poutine loving clubs. Viewers should have a lot of fun watching one of the most intense rivalries in MLS plus two other teams that also made the playoffs.
Best Group Match-Up? - Montreal Impact vs Toronto FC - Wednesday @ 8 PM on TUDN (and TUDN's Twitter) - The Canadian Classique is always a competitive rivalry match, no matter how good or bad either team is. They usually play each other several times in league play and at least once in the Canadian Championship. Now they get to play in the heat of the Florida moon.
Who's Qualifying For The Knock-Outs? - Toronto FC and Montreal Impact - Toronto FC seems to be the clear choice to win the group. They're the most talented team of the four and have plenty of experience in competitions. The second team is harder to pick out. Montreal got my pick almost by default. I don't love this New England team, and I really don't like how DC started the year.
Group D - Western
Teams - Colorado Rapids, Minnesota United, Real Salt Lake, Sporting Kansas City
What to Watch For? - This is the group with the most parity. Minnesota and Salt Lake both made the playoffs last season, and Colorado just missed out. Kansas City had their worst season in a long time last year but was the most impressive team before the league shut down in March. We also get to see both the Rocky Mountain Cup and the Nicest Rivalry in Sports.
Best Group Match-Up? - Minnesota United vs Sporting Kansas City (aka The Nicest Rivalry In Soccer) - Sunday July 12th @ 8 PM on ESPN - The rivalry that isn't so much a rivalry as it is two fan bases that genuinely seem to like each other. The Loons and SKC both had hot starts to the season before the ish hit the fan in March. SKC seems to have a dynamic attack, while Minnesota is excellent at sitting back and countering.
Who's Qualifying For The Knock-Outs? - Sporting Kansas City and Minnesota United - Out of every group in this competition, this is the one where any single team could win the group. I'd almost guarantee that a third team will be making it out of Group D. I picked SKC and the Loons because I like Sporting's attack and coaching a lot and really like Minnesota's ability to defend and hold onto a lead.
Group E - Eastern
Teams - Atlanta United, Columbus Crew SC, FC Cincinnati, New York Red Bulls
What to Watch For? - We got an ideal match-up in this group between Atlanta and New York. Whenever these teams play, it's always super fast and entertaining. Add on to this The Hell Is Real Derby, which began before Cincinnati was in the league. Columbus-Atlanta is also a pretty good match every time they face off. Columbus is going to be my dark horse, as you'll see below.
Best Group Match-Up? - Atlanta United vs New York Red Bulls - Saturday July 11th @ 8 PM on Fox - As I mentioned above, when Atlanta and New York get together, great soccer is played. Atlanta was dealt a hard blow in the first game of the year when Josef Martinez went down, presumably for the year. The Red Bulls haven't looked fantastic so far in 2020, but facing off against Atlanta should motivate them to show their best game.
Who's Qualifying For The Knock-Outs? - Atlanta United and Columbus Crew - The Crew are my dark horse pick in this competition. I don't know why, but I have a strong feeling about Columbus having a strong showing. Atlanta may have lost their top scorer, but I feel they're still talented enough to make it through to the knockout rounds.
Group F - Western
Teams - Houston Dynamo, LAFC, LA Galaxy, Portland Timbers
What to Watch For? - In this 100%, totally random draw, we ended up with LAFC and the LA Galaxy in Group F. LAFC is insanely talented and I feel will have no problem winning this group. Still, the Galaxy, despite not being great since their crosstown foe entered the league, has done nothing but pose as LAFC's toughest opponent. I don't expect much from Houston, but Portland is going to give this group some headaches.
Best Group Match-Up? - LAFC vs LA Galaxy (aka El Trafico) - Saturday July 18th @ 10:30 PM on ESPN - How could I not select El Trafico? Ever since their first match against one another, these matches have been easily the most entertaining matches the league has put on.
Who's Qualifying For The Knock-Outs? - LAFC and Portland Timbers - Once again, LAFC is the best team in the league and I have no doubt they'll win the group. The second team out of this group comes down to Portland and the Galaxy, but I simply like the Timbers more.
Schedule
There will most likely be changes to the schedule
Games on TUDN also available on their Twitter page (for free)
Wednesday July 8th
8 PM - ESPN - Inter Miami vs Orlando City
Thursday July 9th
9 AM - ESPN - New York City FC vs Philadelphia Union
8 PM - TUDN - Montreal Impact vs New England Revolutions
Friday July 10th
9 PM - ESPN - San Jose Earthquakes vs Seattle Sounders
Saturday July 11th
8 PM - Fox - Atlanta United vs New York Red Bulls
10:30 PM - FS1 - Columbus Crew vs FC Cincinnati
Sunday July 12th
9 AM - ESPN 2 - D.C. United vs Toronto FC
8 PM - ESPN - Minnesota United vs Sporting Kansas City
10:30 PM - ESPN - Colorado Rapids vs Real Salt Lake
Monday July 13th
8 PM - FS1 - Houston Dynamo vs Los Angeles FC
10:30 PM - FS1 - LA Galaxy vs Portland Timbers
Tuesday July 14th
9 AM - ESPN - Chicago Fire vs Seattle Sounders
8 PM - TUDN - Nashville SC vs Philadelphia Union
10:30 PM - TUDN - New York City FC vs Orlando City
Wednesday July 15th
8 PM - TUDN - Montreal Impact vs Toronto FC
10:30 PM - TUDN - San Jose Earthquakes vs Vancouver Whitecaps
Thursday July 16th
9 AM - ESPN - Atlanta United vs FC Cincinnati
8 PM - FS1 - D.C. United vs New England Revolution
10:30 PM - FS1 - Columbus Crew vs New York Red Bulls
Friday July 17th
8 PM - ESPN - Colorado Rapids vs Sporting Kansas City
10:30 PM - ESPN - Minnesota United vs Real Salt Lake
Saturday July 18th
8 PM - ESPN - Houston Dynamo vs Portland Timbers
10:30 PM - ESPN - Los Angeles FC vs LA Galaxy
Sunday July 19th
8 PM - FS1 - Chicago Fire vs San Jose Earthquakes
10:30 PM - FS1 - Seattle Sounders vs Vancouver Whitecaps
Monday July 20th
9 AM - ESPN - Inter Miami vs New York City FC
8 PM - TUDN - Orlando City vs Philadelphia Union
Tuesday July 21st
9 AM - ESPN - New England Revolution vs Toronto FC
8 PM - TUDN - Atlanta United vs Columbus Crew
10:30 PM - TUDN - D.C. United vs Montreal Impact
Wednesday July 22nd
9 AM - ESPN - Real Salt Lake vs Sporting Kansas City
8 PM - ESPN - FC Cincinnati vs New York Red Bulls
10:30 PM - ESPN - Colorado Rapids vs Minnesota United
Thursday July 23rd
9 AM - ESPN - Chicago Fire vs Vancouver Whitecaps
8 PM - FS1 - Houston Dynamo vs LA Galaxy
10:30 PM - ESPN 2 - Los Angeles FC vs Portland Timbers
Saturday July 25th
8 PM - ESPN 2 - 1st Place Group A Winner vs Third Place Group C/D/E
10:30 PM - ESPN 2 - 2nd Place Group A vs 2nd Place Group C
Sunday July 26th
8:30 PM - FS1 - 1st Place Group B vs Third Place Group A/B/F
11 PM - FS1 - 1st Place Group D vs Third Place Group B/E/F
Monday July 27th
8:30 PM - FS1 - 1st Place Group C vs Third Place Group A/C/D
11 PM - FS1 - 2nd Place Group B vs 2nd Place Group F
Tuesday July 28th
8 PM - ESPN - 1st Place Group E vs 2nd Place Group D
10:30 PM - ESPN - 1st Place Group F vs 2nd Place Group E
Thursday July 30th
8 PM - ESPN - Quarter-Final One
Friday July 31st
7:30 PM - FS1 - Quarter-Final Two
Sunday August 1st
8 PM - ESPN 2 - Quarter-Final Three
10:30 PM - FS1 - Quarter-Final Four
Wednesday August 5th
8 PM - FS1 - Semi-Final One
Thursday August 6th
8 PM - ESPN 2 - Semi-Final Two
Tuesday August 11th
8 PM - ESPN - Championship Game
To stay up to date on the newest Head in the Game articles (and general sports commentary), follow @headingameblog on Twitter. You can also find us on Twitter @T_RoyStory (Troy) and @G_Tingley (Grant)
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