Major League Soccer will introduce two new teams located east of the Mississippi River, but only one will compete in the league’s Eastern Conference for the 2020 season. Inter Miami will debut in the East, while Nashville SC will play its inaugural campaign in MLS’ Western Conference, per a Monday announcement.
This alignment balances the Eastern and Western conferences with 13 teams each, but it means Nashville will not play in the same circuit as its two closest geographic rivals. Atlanta United, located roughly 250 miles to the southeast, and FC Cincinnati, about 270 miles to the northeast, play in the Eastern Conference.