Decision Day lived up to its name, as decisions got made and the 2025 MLS Cup Playoff matchups for the Eastern and Western Conferences are now set.
All 2025 MLS Cup Playoff games will be broadcast for free for Apple TV subscribers.
• Wild Card: October 22
• Round One: October 24 – November 9
• Conference Semifinals: November 22-23
• Conference Finals: November 29-30
• MLS Cup Final: December 6
Eastern Conference
• Chicago Fire FC vs Orlando City SC
Wed, October 22, 8:30 pm ET, SeatGeek Stadium, Bridgeview, IL
• Philadelphia Union (#1) vs Chicago or Orlando (Wild Card winner)
Game 1: Sun, October 26, 5:30 pm ET, Subaru Park, Chester, PA
Game 2: Sat, November 1, 5:30pm ET, Venue TBD
Game 3 (if necessary): Sat, November 8, Time TBD, Subaru Park, Chester, PA
• FC Cincinnati (#2) vs Columbus Crew (#7)
Game 1: Mon, October 27, 6:45 pm ET, TQL Stadium, Cincinnati, OH
Game 2: Sun, November 2, 6:30pm ET, Lower.com Field, Columbus, OH
Game 3 (if necessary): Sat, November 8, Time TBD, TQL Stadium, Cincinnati, OH
• Inter Miami CF (#3) vs Nashville SC (#6)
Game 1: Fri, October 24, 8:00 pm ET, Chase Stadium, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Game 2: Sat, November 1, 7:30pm ET, GEODIS Park, Nashville, TN
Game 3 (if necessary): Sat, November 8, Time TBD, Chase Stadium, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
• Charlotte FC (#4) vs New York City FC (#5)
Game 1: Tue, October 28, 6:45pm ET, Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, NC
Game 2: Sat, November 1, 3:30pm ET, Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY
Game 3 (if necessary): Fri, November 7, Time TBD, Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, NC
Western Conference
• Portland Timbers vs Real Salt Lake
Wed, October 22, 10:30 pm ET, Providence Park, Portland, OR
• San Diego FC (#1) vs Portland or Salt Lake (Wild Card winner)
Game 1: Sun, October 26, 9:30 pm ET, Snapdragon Stadium, San Diego, CA
Game 2: Sun, November 1, 9:30pm ET, Venue TBD
Game 3 (if necessary): Sun, November 9, Time TBD, Snapdragon Stadium, San Diego, CA
• Vancouver (#2) vs FC Dallas (#7)
Game 1: Sun, October 26, 7:30 pm ET, BC Place, Vancouver, BC
Game 2: Sat, November 1, 9:30pm ET, Toyota Stadium, Frisco, TX
Game 3 (if necessary): Fri, November 7, Time TBD, BC Place, Vancouver, BC
• LAFC (#3) vs Austin FC (#6)
Game 1: Wed, October 29, 1:30 pm ET, BMO Stadium, Los Angeles, CA
Game 2: Sun, November 2, 8:30pm ET, TQL Stadium, Austin, TX
Game 3 (if necessary): Sat, November 8, Time TBD, BMO Stadium, Los Angeles, CA
• Minnesota United (#4) vs Seattle Sounders (#5)
Game 1: Mon, October 27, 9 pm ET, Allianz Field, Minnesota, MN
Game 2: Mon, November 3, 10:30pm ET, Lumen Field, Seattle, WA
Game 3 (if necessary): Sat, November 8, Time TBD, Allianz Field, Minnesota, MN
New York City FC will travel to Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina, to face an ascendant Charlotte FC side that closed out their season with an impressive 2-0 home win over Supporters’ Shield-winning Philadelphia Union.
Hudson River Blue Staff
Michael Battista
That win over Philly wrapped up 4th Place for Charlotte and gets them another match right back at home on the artificial turf of their cavernous American football stadium to open their best-of-three series with NYCFC in Round One of this year’s MLS Cup Playoffs.
New York City would have needed to better Charlotte’s result on Decision Day to jump them in the standings, but they couldn’t pull that off and instead lost at home to Seattle Sounders.
Oliver Strand
For a moment, it looked like Pascal Jansen’s team was heading for a repeat of 2024 and a finish in 6th Place in the East – that would have been the case, had Nashville held on to their lead against Inter Miami. Instead, Lionel Messi rallied his pink-clad troops to a comeback win over Nashville, and New York City just barely avoided dropping to 6th in the East, which would have come with a date against Messi and company.
The series against Charlotte won’t be an easy one for NYCFC – they’ve never won a match on the road in North Carolina, with Charlotte FC a perfect 4W-0D-0L when hosting New York City in the club’s history. Yet there is at least a slight advantage present for NYCFC: Charlotte’s star attacker, Wilfried Zaha, picked up a red card on Decision Day and will be suspended for at least Game One of the best-of-three series.
Liam Fitzpatrick
Game Two of this best-of-three is guaranteed to be played at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, though the dates and times of all three potential Charlotte-NYCFC matches are still be fully confirmed by the league. Keep it posted on this post, as we’ll update it further as we get more information about the kickoff times and dates for the beginnings of this year’s MLS Cup Playoffs.
