Soccer <\/p>\n
It doesn\u2019t get much more monumental than this.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
The start of Major League Soccer\u2019s 31st season is less than two months away, and it will ignite one of the most momentous years in North American soccer history.<\/p>\n
It all centers around the 2026 FIFA World Cup<\/a>, the long-awaited return of Earth\u2019s most eagerly anticipated sporting spectacle this summer. The 1994 tournament in the United States heralded a soccer renaissance, captivating fans from coast to coast and laying the foundation for MLS\u2019s launch in 1996 \u2013 and similarly transformative effects are expected this time around.<\/p>\n That\u2019s not all! There are plenty of other big events for footy fans to mark on their calendars, and we’ve highlighted them in the rundown below.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n It’s the starting line for the MLS marathon, when players and coaches report to their respective clubs as preparations for the new season get underway. Many teams leave their local markets in search of mild weather and quiet settings to focus on the hard work of physical and tactical periodization, centered around popular sites in Florida, Arizona and Southern California.<\/p>\n North America’s top club championship returns. Nine MLS sides<\/a> will compete against top teams from LIGA MX and other leagues across the continent in a knockout-style bracket with two-legged home-and-home series in each round, save for the one-off championship final on Saturday, May 30. In addition to silverware, prize money, and bragging rights, the winner secures a spot in the 2029\u00a0FIFA Club World Cup<\/a> and the 2026 FIFA Intercontinental Cup.<\/p>\n MLS is Back!<\/p>\n A massive 31st season starts when\u00a0St. Louis CITY SC<\/a>\u00a0host Charlotte FC<\/a> in a Saturday afternoon matinee at Energizer Park, the first of 15 matches featuring all 30 member clubs. Another highlight of opening weekend: Reigning champions Inter Miami CF<\/a> visit LAFC<\/a> in a special fixture at historic Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, where a bumper crowd is expected to watch Son Heung-Min<\/a> face Lionel Messi<\/a> & Co.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n The 2026 season kicks off on February 21st. \ud83d\udea8 pic.twitter.com\/dKA8AkPZtN<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) November 20, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n The 14th season of North America\u2019s top-flight women\u2019s professional league gets underway, highlighted by the arrival of two expansion teams, Boston Legacy FC and Denver Summit FC \u2013 bringing NWSL to 16 member clubs. Widely hailed as one of the planet\u2019s elite women\u2019s soccer competitions, the NWSL includes 11 MLS venues and several clubs affiliated with MLS siblings.<\/p>\n The 111th edition of one of the oldest soccer tournaments in the world kicks off with First Round action; the 16 participating MLS clubs<\/a> will enter the fray in the Round of 32 (third phase). A field of 80 teams from all tiers of the U.S. soccer pyramid, from amateur levels up to MLS, will vie for a $1 million purse and a place in the 2027\u00a0Concacaf Champions Cup<\/a>. To avoid overlap with the FIFA World Cup calendar, this year\u2019s format will feature seven rounds, one fewer than recent editions.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n The 2026 Champions Cup bracket is set! \ud83c\udfc6 pic.twitter.com\/0mFgCTbXgD<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Concacaf Champions Cup (@TheChampions) December 10, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Under FIFA regulations, national teams have full access to release players from their club teams for camps during this period, which marks the final international window before the summer. It\u2019s a vital opportunity for United States<\/a>\u00a0coach Mauricio Pochettino and Canada<\/a> boss Jesse Marsch to work with their squads before making final decisions about their rosters for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.<\/p>\n The USMNT will host European giants Belgium and Portugal for high-caliber friendlies at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, home of Atlanta United<\/a>. Meanwhile, the CanMNT\u2019s match schedule has not yet been finalized.<\/p>\n While Canada, the United States and most of the rest of the 2026 field are in the final stages of World Cup preparation, six of the 48 slots in the tournament still have yet to be filled, and will be awarded via the high drama of the playoffs during this same international window.<\/p>\n Four of them will come from Europe, where 16 teams are vying for those spots in UEFA\u2019s playoffs, which involve semifinal and final games across four different \u2018paths.\u2019 One of those winners will slot into the USMNT\u2019s World Cup Group D<\/a> come summer, while another will join the CanMNT in Group B<\/a>.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, two teams from Concacaf (Jamaica and Suriname) will join one team apiece from the African (Congo DR), Asian (Iraq), Oceania (New Caledonia) and South American (Bolivia) confederations in a FIFA intercontinental playoff in Mexico to determine the final two World Cup participants; the survivors will join Groups I and K at the main event.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n The groups are locked in for the 2026 @FIFAWorldCup<\/a>. \ud83d\udd12 pic.twitter.com\/iVNQwmdsP0<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) December 5, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Messi and Inter Miami will cut the ribbon on MLS\u2019s newest soccer-specific stadium with a visit from Austin FC<\/a> (7:30 pm ET | Apple TV<\/a>). A 25,000-seat venue at the heart of a $1 billion mixed-use development near Miami International Airport in the city\u2019s urban core, the Herons\u2019 new home ground is the first of three MLS stadiums set to open in consecutive years, including New York City FC<\/a>\u2019s new home, Etihad Park, arriving in 2027, and Chicago Fire FC<\/a>\u2019s new downtown stadium set to open in 2028.<\/p>\n Amid explosive growth in women\u2019s soccer around the world, Concacaf launched this competition in 2024, the WoSo equivalent of CCC, and its second-ever champion will be decided in May. NWSL sides Washington Spirit and Gotham FC (who won the inaugural W Champions Cup in Nuevo Le\u00f3n, Mexico in May 2025) advanced out of the group stage and will meet Mexican powers Pachuca and Club Am\u00e9rica, respectively, in semifinal clashes.<\/p>\n The winners advance to the championship game and the losers take part in a third-place match; all four matches will be held at a centralized venue to be announced at a later date. The tournament winners will qualify for the 2027 FIFA Women’s Champions Cup and 2028 FIFA Women’s Club World Cup, two new intercontinental tournaments being launched in the coming years.<\/p>\n With a record number of MLS players expected to be called up for the World Cup, five MLS stadiums serving as match venues and many other facilities slated as potential host sites for national team base camps, MLS will pause regular-season play for the beloved tournament, which runs from June 11 to July 19.<\/p>\n The moment of truth, when the top club honor in North America will be decided. Since Seattle Sounders FC<\/a>‘s historic triumph in 2022, every CCC final has featured an MLS vs. LIGA MX matchup, with the Mexican side winning on home soil each time. Will one of MLS\u2019s nine representatives change that trend in \u201826?<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \n Early-to-mid January: MLS preseason begins<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
Feb. 3: Concacaf Champions Cup kicks off<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
Feb. 21: MLS regular season begins<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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March 13: NWSL season opens<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
March 17: Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup begins<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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March 23-31: FIFA men\u2019s international window<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
March 23-31: FIFA World Cup 2026 playoffs<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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April 4: Miami Freedom Park debuts<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
May 20-23: Concacaf W Champions Cup knockout stage<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
May 25-July 16: MLS’s FIFA World Cup pause<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
May 30: Concacaf Champions Cup Final<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n