Within MLS there are a few tiers of quality. Some teams are competing for trophies, others just hoping to get into the playoffs. That’s the angle for this quick preview of Major League Soccer’s 26th season — who is competing for hardware, who will have a decent year, who misses the second season, and who fails hard.
This season there’s more crossover between the conferences than we’ve seen since the Before Times. For the Sounders, that means seeing some of the Eastern Conference sides that have struggled the most. Also, Nashville SC is now in the West and coming to Seattle for the home opener Sunday (5:00 PM PT, FOX 13+/Prime Video/ESPN+).