FRISCO, Texas — Major League Soccer (MLS) and LIGA MX announced the format and groups for Leagues Cup 2024, the second year of the international soccer competition featuring clubs from the United States, Mexico and Canada.
FC Dallas is set to take on MLS Western Conference foe, St. Louis CITY SC, and LIGA MX’s FC Juárez in their group. It will be the first time FC Dallas has played against FC Juárez in club history. FC Dallas is 1-1-0 against St. Louis CITY SC all-time (2-0 win at home and 2-1 loss on the road in 2023).
In Leagues Cup 2023, FC Dallas lost to Charlotte FC in penalties, but advanced out of the group stage after beating Club Necaxa. FC Dallas then defeated Mazatlan in the Round of 32, but were eliminated from the tournament by Lionel Messi and the eventual Leagues Cup title winners, Inter Miami.
The Leagues Cup match against the Herons was sold out and ended in a penalty shootout.
In Leagues Cup, there are no ties. Each team receives one point if the game is tied after 90 minutes. The winner of the subsequent penalty shootout will earn an additional point. Regulation wins count as three points, with games being decided by penalty kick in case of regular time draw.
Here is a breakdown of all the groups in Leagues Cup 2024:
West
- CF Monterrey, Pumas UNAM, Austin FC
- Chivas de Guadalajara, San Jose Earthquakes, LA Galaxy
- St. Louis CITY SC, FC Dallas, FC Juárez
- Toluca FC, Sporting Kansas City, Chicago Fire
- Club León, Portland Timbers, Colorado Rapids
- Seattle Sounders FC, Minnesota United, Necaxa
- Los Angeles Football Club, Vancouver Whitecaps FC, Club Tijuana
- Houston Dynamo FC, Real Salt Lake, Atlas FC
East
- FC Cincinnati, New York City FC, Club Querétaro
- Orlando City, Atlético de San Luis, CF Montréal
- Club Tigres, Club Puebla, Inter Miami CF
- Philadelphia Union, Charlotte FC, Cruz Azul
- New England Revolution, Nashville SC, Mazatlán FC
- Club Pachuca, New York Red Bulls, Toronto FC
- Atlanta United, Club Santos Laguna, D.C. United
Knockout Rounds: Following the Group Stage, the advancing 30 teams will be joined by LIGA MX and MLS cup champions (Columbus Crew and Club America, respectively) and will be placed in a fixed bracket to compete in the single-game elimination Knockout Rounds beginning with the Round of 32 (16 matches), followed by Round of 16 (eight matches).
The eight advancing teams will compete in the Quarterfinals (four matches) before the two Semifinal matches.
Leagues Cup 2024 Third Place and Final will determine the three Concacaf Champions Cup qualified clubs.
Leagues Cup tournament format
Moving forward, the tournament will introduce a tiered Leagues Cup Ranking system, as well as hubs for the highest-ranked LIGA MX clubs. The Leagues Cup ranking will be strictly based on combined MLS and LIGA MX club performance based on points in the last 34 regular season matches. MLS teams will be ranked based on the 2023 MLS Supporters’ Shield standings, while LIGA MX clubs will be ranked based on the cumulative 34 matches in the 2023 Clausura and Apertura tournaments.
All participating clubs – except the two Leagues’ champions - will be divided into three tiers based on the Leagues Cup Ranking (1-15, 16-30, 31-45), forming 15 groups of three clubs each, one club from each tier, prioritizing geographical and competitive balance among the 45 clubs.
For 2024, Leagues Cup will be played in two regions, East and West, with seven groups in the East and eight groups in the West, regionalizing travel for all participating clubs. Like the 2023 format, both LIGA MX and MLS Cup champions, Club America and Columbus Crew respectively, receive an automatic bye to the Round of 32. The two champions are not included in the Leagues Cup Ranking.
The LIGA MX Champion and the three top-ranked LIGA MX clubs will be granted hub privileges. The hub privileges, which will minimize LIGA MX club travel and reward them by playing in pre-determined venues as the home team, are based on the Leagues Cup Ranking. Club America (League champion with a bye) will have hosting privileges through the semifinals, C.F. Monterrey (No. 1 rank) through Round of 16, Chivas Guadalajara (No. 4 rank) through Round of 32, and Tigres (No. 6 rank) throughout the Group Stage, rewarding the clubs according to their 2023 Apertura and Clausura performances.
LIGA MX clubs with hub privileges will play at venues to be announced alongside the Leagues Cup 2024 schedule and bracket at a later date.
This new format, based on the Leagues Cup Ranking, was a joint collaborative effort of the Leagues Cup Organizing Committee, comprising representatives from Leagues Cup, and both MLS and LIGA MX leadership. Considerations included rewarding regular season results and geographical regions while addressing learnings from 2023.
The top three finishers in Leagues Cup 2024 will qualify for the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup in which the winner will represent the region at the FIFA Club World Cup.
When does Leagues Cup 2024 take place?
Leagues Cup 2024 will take place from July 26 – August 25, 2024.
Leagues Cup 2024 ticket information
Tickets for all matches will be available on LeaguesCup.com and will also be available to fans via the hosting MLS club. MLS club season ticket holders should contact their club representative for more information or visit LeaguesCup.com.
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