The 2018 Major League Soccer MLS Cup Final is just under two months away. However, the league is gearing up for the postseason. The MLS Cup Playoffs kick off on Halloween, October 31. Twelve of the leagues 23 teams will compete for the MLS Cup following a marathon 34 game season.
The MLS Cup Playoffs are a completely different animal to the regular season. The 34-game season is slow and methodical. Teams can drop points without much worry. However, once the playoffs begin, it is balls to the wall action and excitement with teams playing a knockout competition in which only the best survive.
The cup playoffs are incredibly unpredictable and a challenge for bettors. The best team doesn’t always win the MLS Cup. Last season, Toronto FC won the trophy. The club’s win was justifiable. Toronto had been the best team in the MLS regular. However, the year prior Toronto lost the cup final to a team that had been one of the worst all season, the Seattle Sounders. The Seattle franchise squeaked into the postseason and won one of the league’s dullest finals ever.
Toronto has followed its two consecutive MLS Cup final appearances by completely missing the postseason.
So, which team will be left standing at the end of the MLS Cup postseason in 2018?
Due to the unbalanced number of teams in this season’s league, there are between two and four games left for clubs to play in the regular season. Four teams in the Eastern Conference (Atlanta United, New York Red Bulls, New York City FC, and Philadelphia Union) and three teams in the Western Conference (FC Dallas, Los Angeles FC, and Sporting KC) have qualified for the playoffs already.
In the East, four teams are still competing for two playoff spots. Columbus Crew has the edge on qualification as they sit seven points ahead of DC United and 13 in front of New England Revolution. DC United still have four matches to play, the most of any team capable of making the playoffs. DC United could overtake current sixth-place team Montreal Impact. Three of DC United’s four games will come at home where the team has won 10 games. The final game of the season will be away to Chicago Fire. Chicago is already out of the playoff picture, but DC United have won just once on the road this term.
In the West, five teams are competing for three playoff spots. The inside track belongs to the Portland Timbers, Seattle Sounders, and Real Salt Lake. LA Galaxy is just one point off the final playoff place with RSL. Meanwhile, Vancouver Whitecaps are two points back. The Galaxy is the unknown. The team has one of the league’s best players in Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The striker has tallied the league’s second most goals with 21 in 25 games. If the Galaxy makes the playoffs, Ibrahimovic could lead the team to the final and lift the MLS Cup.
Who is the bookies’ favourite?
Leading sportsbooks have placed Atlanta United and New York Red Bulls as the joint-favourites to win the MLS Cup. Both clubs are 3/1 to win the trophy. Here is how the rest of the playoff contenders shape up in MLS Cup odds.
– New York City 9/1
– FC Dallas 9/1
– Sporting KC 9/1
– Los Angeles FC 10/1
– Seattle Sounders 14/1
– Portland Timbers 16/1
– Philadelphia Union 20/1
– Columbus Crew 25/1
– Real Salt Lake 40/1
– LA Galaxy 40/1
– DC United 40/1
– Montreal Impact 66/1
– Vancouver Whitecaps 66/1
– New England Revolution 2500/1
There is a lot of value to be head for bettors who pick their MLS Cup winner early.
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