2026 Leagues Cup
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host countries | Canada Mexico United States |
| Dates | August 4 – September 6 |
| Teams | 36 (from 3 associations) |
← 2025 2027 → | |
The 2026 Leagues Cup will be the sixth edition of the Leagues Cup, an international club soccer tournament contested by Major League Soccer (MLS) and Liga MX clubs in North America. It will be held from August 4 to September 6, and feature 36 teams. Like the 2025 edition, only the top 18 MLS teams from the 2025 season qualified for the tournament. All 18 Liga MX clubs will participate.
Seattle Sounders FC are the defending champions, having won their first Leagues Cup title by defeating Inter Miami CF 3–0 in the 2025 final. This will be the first edition of the tournament to feature games played in Mexico.[1]
Format
The tournament will consist of a group stage, known as "Phase One", and a knockout phase. During phase one, teams will play three games against teams in the other league (i.e., all games will be MLS vs Liga MX).[1] The top four teams from each league will advance to the knockout stage, which will consist of quarterfinals, semifinals and a final. Like previous editions of the Leagues Cup, the top three clubs willy qualify for the CONCACAF Champions Cup.[1]
The 2026 tournament will follow the same format as the 2025 tournament. In Phase One, teams earn three points for a win in regulation, two points for a win in a penalty shoot-out, or one point for a loss in a penalty shoot-out.[2] In the event two or more teams end the group stage tied on points, these tiebreakers in order will be used for ranking:[3]
- Greater number of wins in regular time.
- Greater goal difference.
- Greater number of goals scored.
- Fewer number of goals conceded.
- Fewer points in the team’s Fair Play Table.
- A draw organized by the Organizing Committee.
Teams
Thirty-six teams will participate in the Leagues Cup, including all 18 Liga MX teams and 18 out of 30 MLS teams.[1] The 18 MLS teams qualified for Leagues Cup by reaching the 2025 MLS Cup playoffs.[4]
Draw
To determine matchups, all teams were placed into a combined ranking that used the 2025 Supporters' Shield table for MLS teams and the most recent 34 matches in the 2025 Clausura and Apertura seasons for Liga MX teams. These teams were then divided into an East region and a West region based on geographical and performance criteria. Within each region, teams were assigned to tiers based on the combined ranking, with the restriction that each tier included three teams from each league.
| Rank | Tier | Team | League |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Tier 1 | Cruz Azul | Liga MX |
| 5 | Tier 1 | Philadelphia Union | MLS |
| 6 | Tier 1 | FC Cincinnati | MLS |
| 7 | Tier 1 | Inter Miami CF | MLS |
| 11 | Tier 1 | Monterrey | Liga MX |
| 20 | Tier 1 | Pachuca | Liga MX |
| 12 | Tier 2 | Charlotte FC | MLS |
| 14 | Tier 2 | New York City FC | MLS |
| 16 | Tier 2 | Nashville SC | MLS |
| 22 | Tier 2 | Necaxa | Liga MX |
| 28 | Tier 2 | León | Liga MX |
| 29 | Tier 2 | UNAM | Liga MX |
| 17 | Tier 3 | Columbus Crew | MLS |
| 18 | Tier 3 | Chicago Fire FC | MLS |
| 19 | Tier 3 | Orlando City SC | MLS |
| 32 | Tier 3 | Atlas | Liga MX |
| 33 | Tier 3 | Atlético San Luis | Liga MX |
| 35 | Tier 3 | Santos Laguna | Liga MX |
| Rank | Tier | Team | League |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tier 1 | Toluca | Liga MX |
| 2 | Tier 1 | UANL | Liga MX |
| 3 | Tier 1 | América | Liga MX |
| 8 | Tier 1 | San Diego FC | MLS |
| 9 | Tier 1 | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | MLS |
| 10 | Tier 1 | Los Angeles FC | MLS |
| 13 | Tier 2 | Minnesota United FC | MLS |
| 15 | Tier 2 | Seattle Sounders FC | MLS |
| 21 | Tier 2 | Guadalajara | Liga MX |
| 23 | Tier 2 | Juárez | Liga MX |
| 24 | Tier 2 | Austin FC | MLS |
| 27 | Tier 2 | Tijuana | Liga MX |
| 25 | Tier 3 | FC Dallas | MLS |
| 26 | Tier 3 | Portland Timbers | MLS |
| 30 | Tier 3 | Real Salt Lake | MLS |
| 31 | Tier 3 | Querétaro | Liga MX |
| 34 | Tier 3 | Mazatlán | Liga MX |
| 36 | Tier 3 | Puebla | Liga MX |
Regional groupings
Finally, six "regional groupings" were formed by drawing one team per league from each of the three tiers of a region. Teams played three matches against teams from their set who were not from their league.[5]
| Tier | Team | League |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | FC Cincinnati | MLS |
| 1 | Pachuca | Liga MX |
| 2 | Charlotte FC | MLS |
| 2 | UNAM | Liga MX |
| 3 | Columbus Crew | MLS |
| 3 | Atlas | Liga MX |
| Tier | Team | League |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Inter Miami CF | MLS |
| 1 | Monterrey | Liga MX |
| 2 | Nashville SC | MLS |
| 2 | León | Liga MX |
| 3 | Orlando City SC | MLS |
| 3 | Atlético San Luis | Liga MX |
| Tier | Team | League |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cruz Azul | Liga MX |
| 1 | Philadelphia Union | MLS |
| 2 | New York City FC | MLS |
| 2 | Necaxa | Liga MX |
| 3 | Chicago Fire FC | MLS |
| 3 | Santos Laguna | Liga MX |
| Tier | Team | League |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | UANL | Liga MX |
| 1 | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | MLS |
| 2 | Minnesota United FC | MLS |
| 2 | Juárez | Liga MX |
| 3 | Real Salt Lake | MLS |
| 3 | Mazatlán | Liga MX |
| Tier | Team | League |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toluca | Liga MX |
| 1 | Los Angeles FC | MLS |
| 2 | Seattle Sounders FC | MLS |
| 2 | Guadalajara | Liga MX |
| 3 | FC Dallas | MLS |
| 3 | Querétaro | Liga MX |
| Tier | Team | League |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | América | Liga MX |
| 1 | San Diego FC | MLS |
| 2 | Austin FC | MLS |
| 2 | Tijuana | Liga MX |
| 3 | Portland Timbers | MLS |
| 3 | Puebla | Liga MX |
Round dates
The schedule of the competition was as follows.[5]
| Phase | Round | Date |
|---|---|---|
| League stage | Matchday 1 | August 4–6 |
| Matchday 2 | August 7–9 | |
| Matchday 3 | August 11–13 | |
| Knockout stage | Quarterfinals | August 25–27 |
| Semifinals | September 1–2 | |
| Third place playoff | September 6 | |
| Final |
League phase
Table
- Liga MX
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | PW | PL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | América | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 2 | Atlas | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 3 | Atlético San Luis | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 4 | Cruz Azul | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 5 | Guadalajara | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 6 | Juárez | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 7 | León | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 8 | Mazatlán | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 9 | Monterrey | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 10 | Necaxa | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 11 | Pachuca | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 12 | Puebla | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 13 | Querétaro | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 14 | Santos Laguna | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 15 | Tijuana | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 16 | Toluca | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 17 | UANL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 18 | UNAM | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
See above for tie-breaking criteria.
- Major League Soccer
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | PW | PL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Austin FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 2 | Charlotte FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 3 | Chicago Fire FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 4 | FC Cincinnati | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 5 | Columbus Crew | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 6 | FC Dallas | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 7 | Los Angeles FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 8 | Inter Miami CF | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 9 | Minnesota United FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 10 | Nashville SC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 11 | New York City FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 12 | Orlando City SC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 13 | Philadelphia Union | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 14 | Portland Timbers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 15 | Real Salt Lake | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 16 | San Diego FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 17 | Seattle Sounders FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 18 | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
See above for tie-breaking criteria.
Results
Knockout stage
The quarterfinal pairings will be determined as follows:
- MLS 1 vs Liga MX 4
- MLS 2 vs Liga MX 3
- MLS 3 vs Liga MX 2
- MLS 4 vs Liga MX 1
Bracket
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
Third place playoff
The winners of the third place playoff will qualify as the last seed to the 2027 CONCACAF Champions Cup.
Final
Both clubs that make the final will qualify for the 2027 CONCACAF Champions Cup, with the winners qualifying directly to the round of 16.
References
- ^ a b c d Becherano, Lizzy (March 5, 2026). "Liga MX stadiums to host Leagues Cup phase one matches in 2026". espn.com. Retrieved March 7, 2026.
- ^ "Leagues Cup 2025 Guide: Everything fans need to know". Major League Soccer. July 25, 2025. Retrieved August 1, 2025.
- ^ "Standings | Phase One Standings". Leagues Cup. Retrieved August 4, 2025.
- ^ "Leagues Cup 2026 Set to be Played August 4-September 6; Participating Clubs Announced". leaguescup.com. Soccer United Marketing, LLC. December 16, 2025. Retrieved March 7, 2026.
- ^ a b "Leagues Cup Unveils 2026 Schedule, Sets Stage for Major Club Competition Post World Cup". leaguescup.com. Soccer United Marketing, LLC. March 5, 2026. Retrieved March 7, 2026.