The Pitch: Storylines to Watch in Audi MLS Cup Playoffs Best-of-3 Series, Game 3

MLS Communications

The Audi 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs Round One Best-of-3 Series was action-packed and filled to the brim with dramatic moments, including a trio of historic upsets in the Eastern Conference and both Los Angeles-based teams taking care of business as the two highest seeded teams remaining.

The top three seeds in the Eastern Conference – Inter Miami CF, the Columbus Crew, and FC Cincinnati – fell to the underdogs as New York City FC, the New York Red Bulls, and Atlanta United, respectively, advanced to the Eastern Conference Semifinals. The Red Bulls ended the Crew’s MLS Cup presented by Audi title defense in two games, while a pair of series-defining goalkeeper performances from New York City’s Matt Freese and Atlanta’s Brad Guzan pushed them over the line against Cincinnati and Miami, respectively.

Over in the Western Conference, the LA Galaxy bounced back from a Decision Day loss and dismantled the Colorado Rapids over two games while LAFC were pushed to their limit by Vancouver Whitecaps FC in Game 3, before Mateusz Bogusz scored the game-winning goal. The Galaxy will face No. 6 seed Minnesota United FC, who pulled off the only upset in the West by defeating Real Salt Lake, and LAFC will meet Seattle Sounders FC in a postseason fixture that has seen the winner advance to MLS Cup in each of their previous three playoff meetings (2019, 2020, and 2023).

The full Audi 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs Conference Semifinals schedule is below, with each game being broadcast live on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV, in addition to the LA Galaxy's match against Minnesota United FC being broadcast on FS1, FOX Deportes, TSN, and RDS.

Saturday, November 23

6 New York City FC vs. No. 7 New York Red Bulls (5:30 p.m. ET, Citi Field)
1 LAFC vs. No. 4 Seattle Sounders FC (10:30 p.m. ET, BMO Stadium)

Sunday, November 24

4 Orlando City SC vs. No. 9 Atlanta United (3:30 p.m. ET, Inter&Co Stadium)
No. 2 LA Galaxy vs. No. 6 Minnesota United FC (6 p.m. ET, Dignity Health Sports Park)

Big Apple Battle – A Rarity in Professional Sports

The 30th all-time meeting between New York City FC and the New York Red Bulls will also be the first to take place in the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs. After both sides produced dramatic upsets in the Round One Best-of-3 Series, all eyes will turn to Citi Field on Saturday, November 23 (5:30 p.m. ET, MLS Season Pass on Apple TV) for a Hudson River Derby with the winner advancing to the Eastern Conference Final.

Across the 11 major men’s professional sports teams in the New York metropolitan area, a New York-New York playoff matchup has been a rarity. Despite a close call in 2024, the New York Yankees and Mets have only met once in the 2000 World Series. In the NBA, the Knicks and Nets last met in 2004, while the Jets and Giants have never faced one another in an NFL playoff game. The most common matchups have been in the NHL as the New York Rangers and New Jersey Devils have faced off four times in the postseason since 2000; however, the Rangers and Islanders last met over 25 years ago in 1998.

The Hudson River Derby next week will mark the 21st time two New York metropolitan area teams have met in the postseason and just the third instance since 2010. The Red Bulls look to make their first Eastern Conference Final since 2018, while New York City FC is aiming to reach their third Conference Final in the last four years. The ultimate bragging rights are up for grabs between these two rivals – who will come out the king of New York?

Sounders and LAFC Reignite Postseason Rivalry

Since 2019, the Western Conference side of the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs have been largely owned by the Los Angeles Football Club and Seattle Sounders FC, who have combined to appear in four of the five MLS Cup finals over the span while winning three. On Saturday, Nov. 23 (10:30 p.m. ET, MLS Season Pass on Apple TV), their postseason rivalry will be renewed as both clubs vie to earn a berth in Western Conference Final and move one step close to the ultimate goal of lifting the Philip F. Anschutz Trophy as MLS Cup champions.

The Sounders, behind the scoring exploits of forward Raúl Ruidíaz, bested LAFC in both 2019 (Western Conference Final) and 2020 (First Round) en route to MLS Cup appearances in each season. Ruidíaz was the hero in both meetings, scoring three goals and adding two assists while contributing to five of the club’s six goals across those contents. LAFC punched back in 2023, defeating Seattle 1-0 in the Western Conference Semifinals behind a goal from forward Denis Bouanga, before advancing to their second consecutive MLS Cup.

Staples of the MLS postseason, LAFC and Seattle have each averaged a top-four position in the Western Conference and top-eight finish in the Supporters’ Shield standings since the former entered the league in 2018. With the winner of the previous postseason matches advancing to MLS Cup, their high-powered showdown could carry even more importance in the Audi 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs picture and move closer to crowning one club as the cream of the Western Conference crop.

MLS International Call-Ups for November 2024

Polish Quartet Eye Nations League Knockouts: Mateusz Bogusz (LAFC), Dominik Marczuk (Real Salt Lake), Bartosz Slisz (Atlanta United), and Karol Swiderski (Charlotte FC) will represent Poland in their quest to qualify for the UEFA Nations League A knockout round. Marczuk earned his first senior national team call-ups after an impressive end to his first season in MLS and alongside established national team stars in Bogusz, Slisz, and Swiderski, he will look to impress at the international level against Portugal and Scotland.

Pressure Mounts on the Uruguayans: Both Cristian Olivera (LAFC) and Facundo Torres (Orlando City SC) return to the Uruguay men’s national team ahead of crucial 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Colombia and Brazil, who sit in second and fourth, respectively, in the South American standings. Both Olivera and Torres enter camp having scored in the Audi 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs Round One Best-of-3 Series, helping their sides advance to the Conference Semifinals, and will look to carry that scoring touch into the final international window of 2024.

Eyeing the Concacaf Nations League Semifinals: Canada and the United States collectively named 14 MLS players to their Concacaf Nations League Quarterfinals rosters to face Suriname and Jamaica, respectively. Minnesota United FC duo Tani Oluwaseyi and Dayne St. Clair will look to log minutes for Canada after helping the Loons advance past Real Salt Lake in the Round One Best-of-3 Series while Miles Robinson, Tim Ream, Patrick Schulte, and Zack Steffen aim to round out their 2024 with a pair of positive results against the “Reggae Boyz”.

To assist in your coverage of the 2024 MLS season, the MLS Communications staff has provided the following media resources, all of which are available on MLSsoccer.com/Media-Resources.