It's October in North American soccer, meaning it's time for fans in this portion of the world to widely celebrate the one event that largely separates us from the rest of the planet: the playoffs.
It's been glorious.
Austin FC has advanced to the Western Conference semifinals of the MLS Cup Playoffs after overcoming the realest of Real Salt Lake challenges: Pablo Mastroeni's team — a massive underdog away from home at Q2 Stadium — played down a man for 68 minutes, faced 38 shots and still managed to get it to a penalty shootout.
The MLS Cup Playoffs are officially underway and the first day of action featured no shortage of drama. FC Cincinnati came from behind to upset the New York Red Bulls 2-1 thanks to a cool finish from Brandon Vazquez while Julián Araujo was the hero for the LA Galaxy as they beat Nashville SC 1-0.
There’s an old cliché in football that the table doesn’t lie. In MLS — where the Supporters’ Shield is a nice accolade but pales significantly to lifting MLS Cup — that couldn’t be further from the truth.
America's most promising goalkeeping prospect is officially heading abroad, as Gabriel Slonina is set to begin a 13-day training spell with Chelsea.
The youngest signing in Chicago Fire history and the youngest starting keeper in MLS history, Slonina became Chicago's most expensive player ever on Aug. 2 when he joined Chelsea for a $15 million fee. The keeper was then loaned back to the Fire for the remainder of the MLS season.
Merritt Paulson, the CEO of the Portland Thorns and their Major League Soccer counterparts, the Timbers, said he was removing himself effective immediately, following a report that detailed abuse in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL).
Statement From Merritt Paulson
The dramatics of MLS's Decision Day weren't reserved for Sunday's encounter between Austin FC and the Colorado Rapids with los Verdes locked in as the West's number two seed and the Mighty Pids still coming to terms with a fall from first to 10th over the course of a year.
Real Salt Lake welcomed the Portland Timbers to Rio Tinto Stadium for Decision Day knowing it needed a win to make the MLS Cup Playoffs. A 3-0 rout secured the victory and sent Pablo Mastroeni’s side to the playoffs for the second consecutive season.
The Eastern Conference playoff bracket was set earlier in the day, and now the Western Conference side is clear after the dust settled on Sunday's Decision Day action.
The marquee matchup out West was a winner-takes-all clash between free falling Minnesota United and a climbing Vancouver Whitecaps side in front of a record crowd at Allianz Field in Saint Paul.
FC Cincinnati clinched its first-ever MLS Cup Playoffs berth with a comprehensive 5-2 win on the road over DC United. A flurry of early goals got the ball rolling and the visitors never let up as Brazilian forward Brenner bagged a first-half hat-trick.