The Wild, Wild Western Conference is Wide Open
With just three MLS matchdays remaining in the 2023 regular season, the wild, wild Western Conference remains wide open as only one playoff position has been clinched and 12 of the conference’s 14 teams continue to fight for their postseason lives. Among those still battling for playoff positioning in the West are defending MLS Cup champion LAFC, perennial postseason participant Seattle Sounders FC, and Real Salt Lake, all of whom eye clinching this week.
Every advantage matters in the playoffs, and with four or fewer games remaining for all teams in the West, the next week will be crucial to earning homefield advantage into the Round One Best-of-3 series. In the first round of last year's Audi 2022 MLS Cup Playoffs, five of the six home teams advanced and in the conference semifinals, three of the four teams that advanced were the home team.
After more than 30 games of regular season play, it all comes down to this. Just six points separate fifth place from 11th place in the Western Conference table, meaning this week’s showdowns will be critical in defining the playoff field. Also looming large is Decision Day, the final day of the MLS regular season on October 21, where the final playoff picture will be stamped.
Has St. Louis Already Produced the Best Expansion-Year Ever?
After a dominant 4-1 victory over rivals Sporting Kansas City on Saturday, the accolades have begun to pile up for St. Louis CITY SC as their inaugural regular season winds to a close. St. Louis earned their 17th win of the season, eclipsing LAFC (16 in 2018) for the most by an expansion club in their debut season (excluding the shootout era).
With three games left, here is where the club ranks among notable expansion teams in their first seasons:
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How St. Louis’ first season will ultimately be remembered will come down to their performance in the Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs. Historically, expansion sides to make the postseason in their inaugural season have not fared well. Since 2000, only Nashville SC has advanced at least one round in their inaugural year, doing so in an expanded 2020 playoffs. The lone expansion side to make a big impact in the playoffs was the 1998 Chicago Fire, who went on to win MLS Cup.
With the top seed locked up, St. Louis can solidify their place as the best expansion side ever with a strong end to the regular season and a deep run in the Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs.
Year-End Awards Watchlist: Sigi Schmid MLS Coach of the Year
With three matchdays remaining in the 2023 MLS regular season, coaches from around the league are finalizing their résumés for the annual Sigi Schmid MLS Coach of the Year award.
FC Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan and St. Louis CITY SC head coach Bradley Carnell have had historic seasons for their respective clubs in 2023.
Noonan led Cincinnati to a Supporters’ Shield-winning season – their first-ever trophy as an MLS club – and set club records for games won (19) and points won (65) with three games remaining. With two games left at TQL Stadium, Cincinnati (13-1-1 at home) could still surpass the 2018 New York Red Bulls (14-2-1) for the best single-season home record in MLS history.
As a first-year head coach, Carnell led St. Louis CITY SC to one of the best inaugural seasons by an expansion team in MLS history. In addition to clinching an Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs berth, St. Louis became the first expansion team to earn the No. 1 seed in their conference and win 17 regular season games in its debut season (excluding the shootout era).
Columbus Crew head coach Wilfried Nancy and Houston Dynamo FC head coach Ben Olsen have led a pair of impressive one-year turnarounds for their respective clubs.
In Columbus, Nancy earned Columbus an Audi MLS Cup Playoffs berth after a two-year absence and has coached a career year out of forward Cucho Hernández (14 goals, 11 assists), who remains in the thick of the league’s MVP race. Columbus is also five points away from surpassing their club –record of 57 points from their 2008 MLS Cup-winning season with three games remaining.
Olsen’s return to the MLS touchline has seen him guide Houston to within touching distance of their first Audi MLS Cup Playoffs berth since 2017. With three games remaining in their regular-season schedule, they could also tie the club record of 53 points set in 2017 if they win out.
Additionally, Orlando City SC head coach Óscar Pareja has led the Lions to a club-record 54 points with three games remaining, surpassing the 51-point record he helped set in 2021. Pareja has also coached the best out of his offense as no other club in MLS has more players with 10 or more goal contributions during the regular season than Orlando’s four.
Scoring Title Up for Grabs in Race for the 2023 MLS Golden Boot presented by Audi
The MLS Golden Boot presented by Audi is awarded annually to the player with the most goals at the end of the MLS regular season. In the case of a tie, the total number of assists is the first tiebreaker, followed by the fewest minutes played.
The 2023 season is for the record books, as 20 players have already scored at least 10 goals, which ranks as the 10th-most in MLS history with three matchdays left on the schedule. For the first time ever, those 20 players are in position to end the season with scoring totals that are all within five goals of one another.
Hany Mukhtar, the reigning MLS Golden Boot presented by Audi and Landon Donovan MLS MVP award winner, is once again a contender for this year’s title. The Nashville SC midfielder (15 goals, 10 assists) is currently tied with FC Cincinnati’s Luciano ‘Lucho’ Acosta (15 goals, 13 assists) and Atlanta United’s Giorgos Giakoumakis (15 goals, 3 assists) for the scoring lead. Those closely trailing with 14 goals include D.C. United’s Christian Benteke, LAFC’s Dénis Bouanga, Columbus Crew’s Cucho Hernández, and Vancouver Whitecaps FC’s Brian White. Rounding out the current top ten with 13 goals are Philadelphia Union’s Dániel Gazdag, Sporting Kansas City’s Alan Pulido, and Orlando City SC’s Facundo Torres.
If Mukhtar captures this year’s Golden Boot presented by Audi, he will become the first-ever player to win in back-to-back seasons and just the fourth player since 2005 to win in multiple years joining Jeff Cunningham (2006, 2009), Chris Wondolowski (2010, 2012), and Bradley Wright-Phillips (2014, 2016).
MLS NEXT Pro No. 1 Seeds to Select Their Opponent for Conference Semifinals
The field is set for the MLS NEXT Pro Conference Semifinals after six teams advanced from the Conference Quarterfinals over the weekend, including two lower-seeded teams that upset their opponents on the road. With the League’s new pick-your-opponent playoff format, the two No. 1 seeds – Colorado Rapids 2 (West) and Crown Legacy FC (East) – will now select who they will face in the Conference Semifinals.
The weekend’s victors – Austin FC II, New York Red Bulls II, Columbus Crew 2, New England Revolution II, Earthquakes II and Tacoma Defiance – have advanced to the Conference Semifinal round and wait to learn who they will play. After earning a first-round bye, Colorado Rapids 2 and Crown Legacy FC will take their turn in selecting their opponents. They will choose from the two lowest seeds remaining in their conference after the Quarterfinals – No. 3 Columbus Crew 2 and No. 4 New York Red Bulls II in the East and No. 4 Austin FC II and No. 6 Earthquakes II in the West. The second-highest seeded team (No. 2 New England Revolution II in the East and No. 2 Tacoma Defiance in the West) will face the remaining team.
The Conference Semifinals matchups and schedule are expected to be announced Tuesday afternoon on mlsnextpro.com and @MLSNEXTPro on Twitter and Instagram. The second round will take place on the weekend of October 6, with all matches airing live on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.
Tap-Ins: Matchdays 36 & 37
A look at other headlines and activity around Major League Soccer ahead of Matchdays 36 & 37:
- 'We believe that we belong here,' says St. Louis City SC coach on first-place finish (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
- The first trailer for Lionel Messi docuseries 'Messi Meets America' has just dropped, it looks incredible (SportBible)
- MLS Facility Boom Continues With $150M San Diego Project (Front Office Sports)
- Alexi Lalas and David Mosse talk about Cincinnati FC winning the Supporters Shield and rewriting the narrative around expansion teams underperforming in MLS (State of the Union Podcast)
