Soccer
Merry MLSmas! The 2025 season, the league’s 30th, is finally here.
Yes, we’re shamelessly (but respectfully!) borrowing the beautiful, time-honored concept coined by Columbus Crew fans to celebrate their MLS home opener: ‘Crewsmas,’ a family reunion and de facto local holiday for the Ohio capital’s vibrant soccer community, the latest edition of which unfolds at Lower.com Field on Saturday night with a visit from ex-boss Gregg Berhalter and Chicago Fire FC.
Though Columbus are the ones to tag it with a snappy term, a similar ritual will unfold at 14 other stadia across the league this weekend. Here’s a quick swing through the most intriguing fixtures and plotlines that await in Matchday 1.
Leo Messi’s team always draws plenty of eyeballs globally, and Miami’s Concacaf Champions Cup campaign adds a few extra layers. Literally.
Hopefully the Supporters’ Shield holders will have thawed out from their midweek jaunt to icy Kansas City. The Herons survived subzero temperatures – it was one of the coldest games involving any MLS team ever – to bank a 1-0 first-leg win over Sporting Kansas City via a moment of magic from, well, you-know-who, which puts Miami in the driver’s seat for advancement to the CCC Round of 16.
That game got postponed from Tuesday to Wednesday to sidestep a winter storm, which in turn led to Saturday’s home opener at Chase Stadium being pushed back from 2:30 to 7:30 pm ET to give the hosts a bit more recovery time. We expect Javier Mascherano & Co. to be cautious with their lineup, likely rotating some starters to stay fresh for Tuesday’s CCC second leg. Then again, Messi loves to play and went the distance on Wednesday, repudiating chatter about his supposed discomfort with the arctic Midwest conditions.
Anything less than a full 90 from the GOAT would represent an opportunity for NYCFC to exploit how their opponents are fighting on two fronts. Problem is, the Cityzens are presently in a phase of flux, with new head coach Pascal Jansen presiding over a list of preseason injuries to Thiago Martins, Tayvon Gray and others, and the reportedly imminent departure of linchpin playmaker Santiago Rodríguez to Brazil’s Botafogo for what’s said to be a massive transfer fee.
Perhaps of note: NYCFC have lost five season openers in a row.
With a new head coach, new sporting director, a raft of new players and somewhere around $45 million spent on new signings over the two most recent transfer windows, ATLUTD look like the proverbial offseason champions, intent on restoring their place among the MLS elite.
Conventional wisdom says it will take time for the squad to gel and Ronny Deila’s ideas to take root, particularly given that striker Emmanuel Latte Lath, the Five Stripes’ showcase reinforcement acquired at a reported MLS-record price of $22 million plus add-ons, has been with the team less than two weeks. Still, expectations are soaring down in Georgia as Miguel Almirón returns, which should ensure a large crowd and rocking atmosphere at Mercedes-Benz Stadium – arguably MLS’s most jaw-dropping venue – when CF Montréal hit town on Saturday night.
This is a rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference Wild Card match in the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs, a riveting affair that had to be decided by a penalty-kick shootout. CFMTL remain centered on young talents and those overlooked or undervalued in other places; hence their front line will be spearheaded by Giacomo Vrioni, the Albanian striker jettisoned by New England at a discount over the winter. Expect Montréal to be proud underdogs.
Almirón and Latte Lath with The Connector ???? pic.twitter.com/ImXZrIWmhY
— Atlanta United FC (@ATLUTD) February 19, 2025
From a numerologist’s perspective, it’s kismet: MLS welcomes its 30th member club in its 30th season of existence. Expansion stories tend to draw their greatest energy from the local vibes, though, and euphoria is surging in “America’s Finest City” as San Diego FC count down to their inaugural match, which also happens to be the debut of Sunday Night Soccer presented by Continental Tire, the newest offering on MLS Season Pass.
And it’s a fun one, as the newcomers roll up Interstate 5 to Dignity Health Sports Park to visit their nearest intra-league neighbors, the defending MLS Cup champions. That’s a stout opening test for coach Mikey Varas, winger Chucky Lozano and the rest of the brand-new SDFC project. Though it might actually be a decent time to catch the Galaxy, who had to perform significant offseason roster surgery to be compliant with salary-budget rules and are missing star maestro Riqui Puig and other key contributors to injury.
With a long-term focus on youth development via a highly ambitious academy structure, are San Diego in for a rough introduction (like most expansion outfits)? Or can they defy expectations in year one like St. Louis CITY SC, their most recent predecessor, did in 2023?
“It’s clear the areas that we want to continue to grow in,” Varas said this week, “but the team has taken tremendous steps forward into showing that we can be competitive and we can play a clear style of play.”
Read MoreElida Serna