The MLS 2022 season may only be four or five matches in, however, there will be many that will be interested in what could still potentially happen at the end of the campaign in November when we will see the MLS Cup winner be crowned.
There will be excitement for this season
Indeed, there will be a lot of excitement regarding this year’s competition following New York City FC’s victory last season after defeating the Portland Timbers on penalties after a 1-1 scoreline after extra-time. It meant that the league had produced five different champions in the last five seasons!
Of course, the season is currently on a break due to the latest round of international fixtures, with many of the players currently competing in the North American league continuing to represent their nations and seal a place in the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar when it happens.
For instance, many will have been on duty for the likes of the USMNT and Canada, with the latter having already sealed their place in their first finals since 1986, whilst the former just need a positive result against Costa Rica.
With this in mind, many of them will likely be returning to their MLS franchises in high spirits, which could be of a major benefit to their clubs as they look to get back on with the campaign and continue to build on the work that they have already managed to achieve.
Some MLS teams have already made a fast start to the league campaign
Naturally, there are a couple of teams that have already made fast starts in each conference, with a handful of them still remaining unbeaten after four or five matches played. In the Eastern Conference, the Philadelphia Union, the Columbus Crew, and the Chicago Fire all remain unbeaten whereas Los Angeles FC and Minnesota United have both enjoyed a start that has only yielded positive results.
Many sportsbooks in the States think NYCFC do have the ability to defend last season’s title, but the likes of Los Angeles FC, New England Revolution, Seattle Sounders and Philadelphia are right up there as well with the reigning champions.
By general consensus, the five teams outlined above are considered to be the favorites to win the MLS Cup this season, although, given the start of the 2022 campaign, it might be easy to question why a few of those are mentioned!
As we stated earlier, LAFC has had a fast start to the year as they remain unbeaten before heading into the international break and have managed to put together a string of impressive results. They have managed to record victories against the Colorado Rapids, Inter Miami, and the Vancouver Whitecaps whilst they managed to secure a point in the final moments of the game against the Portland Timbers.
New York City FC will be considered one of the favorites to win the competition again because of their efforts last season and the fact that they managed to keep a lot of their squad together, but that does not seem to have helped them too much, as they have struggled. They have just one win (against Montreal CF) and one draw (Vancouver Whitecaps), but two defeats (Los Angeles Galaxy and Philadelphia Union).
The Seattle Sounders are always a pick for many due to the strong team and history that they have in the MLS, although they have started poorly by their own standards with the same record as NYCFC, whilst the New England Revolution – who have the same pattern of results – are also considered. This will likely be down to the fact that they have a rather strong squad, too!
What to expect?
Naturally, it is still very early days in the race for the 2022 MLS Cup, and the fact that the tournament breaks off into an elimination format once the league comes to its conclusion only makes it even harder at this stage to try and work out who the favorite is to win!
Nonetheless, it would perhaps be wise to look at the five teams mentioned, as it is possible to make a case for each of them at this stage!