Major League Soccer and LIGA MX are releasing new details about next year's 2023 Leagues Cup. The tournament will take place between July 21st and August 19th and will feature every club in North America's top two leagues. While the tournament is being played, clubs will not play regular season matches.
All 77 games are set to be hosted inside MLS Stadiums. This also includes games that will see LIGA MX play against another LIGA MX club. We will also see groups broken into four regions East, West, Central, and South.
The 2023 Leagues Cup tournament will follow a familiar style many soccer fans are used to, with a group stage played before the knockout stages begin. Taking a deeper look at the group stage, each club will play at least two games. MLS will rank their teams based on how clubs finished in the 2022 Supporters Shield.
So, the Philadelphia Union, who sit two in the standings, would be among the first 15 MLS teams to be seeded in the tournament. Once the Top 15 MLS teams are placed, the Top 15 LIGA MX teams, with points combined from the 2022 Clausura & Apertura standings, will be placed in reverse order. For example, Group 1 would be made of MLS's club that finished second in the Supporters' shield standings and paired with LIGA MX's 15-ranked team. The third team in the group will comprise the remaining 13 MLS teams and two remaining LIGA MX clubs. Joining the tournament in the round of 32 will be the 2022 MLS Cup Champion, and for LIGA MX, it will be one of the champions of either the Clausura or Apertura 2022. Whatever club has the most combined points between both 2022 tournaments.
Moving onto the Knockout Rounds, we will see single-game eliminations like in the World Cup. The rounds will start with 32 teams and culminate with the final being played on Saturday, August 19th. There are also some great rewards for three teams. The winner of the third-place game will qualify for the Concacaf Champions League. The two teams who make it to the finals will be eligible for the Concacaf Champions league. The overall tournament winner gets the advantage of entering the Concacaf Champions League tournament in the round of 16.
One interesting thing to note about the tournament, there will be no draws. If, after 90 minutes, the game is tied, both teams will earn the traditional point. However, a penalty shootout will occur, with the winner making another point. Winning within the 90-minute window will still bag the winning team's traditional three points.
MLS also announced that fans could watch the tournament through the Apple TV app. All matches will be part of their 10-year tv partnership deal with Apple. They also said more broadcast information would be announced as we get closer to the tournament.
For several years, Major League Soccer and Liga MX have worked together closely in an effort to help grow the game in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
Those efforts are taking on a new form starting in 2023 as MLS and Liga MX teams will face off in the revamped Leagues Cup.
But what is the Leagues Cup, who will play in it and what will it look like? GOAL has answers with everything you need to know about the new-look tournament.
What is the Leagues Cup?
The Leagues Cup debuted in 2019 with four teams from each league participating in a single-elimination tournament to be held in 2019.
That first iteration was won by Cruz Azul, who defeated Tigres in the final to wih the inaugural trophy. The tournament was then canceled in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but resumed in 2021 with Club Leon defeating the Seattle Sounders 3-2 in the final.
The competition was not held in 2022 - although some exhibition matches were held under the moniker "Leagues Cup Showcase" - as the two leagues focused on a new format, which will begin in 2023.
What is the new format for the Leagues Cup?
Starting in 2023, all 47 teams from MLS and Liga MX will enter into a new-look competition featuring a World Cup-style tournament.
It will begin with a group stage followed by knockout rounds, with teams separated into four regions: East, West, South and Central.
A total of 77 games will be hosted at MLS stadiums throughout the U.S. and Canada, with the venue depending on the region.
How will the League Cup group stage work?
The 2022 MLS Cup champion will skip the group stage and start play in the Round of 32, while the winner of Liga MX's Clausura or Apertura title with the most points accumulated between the two tournaments will also skip right to the knockouts.
Each club will play a minimum of two matches in the group stage, with the top two teams from each group advancing to the knockouts.
MLS clubs ranked two through 16 in the 2022 Supporters' Shield standings will be given the first seed in each group, while Liga MX clubs ranked two through 16 in their combined seasons will be paired on the opposite side. For example, Liga MX's 15 will play MLS No.2, while Liga MX's No.3 will play MLS' 14.
The remaining 13 teams will then be drawn into groups and divided by geography.
There will be no draws in the Leagues Cup group stage. At the end of regulation, if scores are level, both teams will receive one point, with the winner of a penalty shootout getting an additional point.
How will the League Cup knockout rounds work?
The knockouts will be single elimination all the way through, starting with a Round of 32 all the way to an eventual finale and third-place game.
What do teams get for winning the Leagues Cup?
The winner of the eventual third-place match will earn a spot in the CONCACAF Champions League, while both finalists will also earn spots in the CCL. The winner, though, will skip straight to the CCL Round of 16.
When will the 2022 Leagues Cup be played?
The tournament will run from July 21 through August 19.
Each league will pause its respective seasons, with no MLS or Liga MX matches being played during the tournament.
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