ORLANDO, Fla. (July 25, 2024) — With the Paris 2024 Olympics underway, Major League Soccer will take a break from regular season play to host an international tournament, featuring clubs from Mexico's Liga MX. On Friday, Orlando City SC will begin play in Leagues Cup 2024.
Ahead of the the Lions' matches at Inter&Co Stadium, here's a look at the Leagues Cup tournament, including format, rule changes and a glimpse at each opponent:
Tournament Format
- This is the second edition of the Leagues Cup
- 4 weeks, 3 countries, 2 leagues, 1 champion
- Leagues Cup is the very first two-league tournament sanctioned by the Confederation
- 77 matches in one action-packed month hosted at stadiums throughout the U.S. and Canada
- All 29 MLS clubs and 18 Liga MX clubs participate
- World Cup style tournament with a Group Stage made up of two regions (East & West) followed by Knockout Rounds until one team is crowned the champion
Group Stage
- The top two teams out of each group will advance to the Round of 32
Knockout Rounds
- Single-game elimination format
- Round of 32, Round of 16, Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Final
- Losers of the semifinals will play in the Third-Place Match to determine the final automatic bid to the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup
- Bracket system to the final
- Winner of Orlando’s Group to take on the second-place team of Philadelphia Union, Cruz Azul (Liga MX), Charlotte FC
- Second place team to play winner of that group
What's at Stake
Officially sanctioned by Concacaf, the top three teams will receive automatic bids into 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup with a chance to represent the Confederation at the FIFA Club World Cup.
Rule Changes of Note
- If a match ends in a draw after 90 minutes, it will go directly to a penalty kick shootout
- The winner of the shootout gets 2 points while the loser gets 1 point
- Two teams will bypass the Group Stage:
- Columbus Crew
- Winner of 2023 MLS Cup
- Club América
- Liga MX team with most points across 2023 Apertura and 2023 Clausura
- Columbus Crew
Group Stage Match Dates
Fri., July 26 vs. CF Montreal (Inter&Co Stadium)
Sun., Aug. 4 vs. Atletico de San Luis (Inter&Co Stadium)
About Group Opponents
CF Montréal
Head Coach: Laurent Courtois
- MLS Eastern Conference team
- 19th Club in Major League Soccer; Joined MLS in 2012
- Based out of Montréal, Québec; Play their home matches at Stade Saputo
- 6-10-9, 27 points through 25 matches; Currently 11th in the Eastern Conference
- Nicknames: Le CFM or L'Impact (The Impact)
- Honors:
- Canadian Championship in 2008, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2021
- Concacaf Champions Cup Runners-Up 2015-15
Atlético de San Luis
Head Coach: Domènec Torrent
- Liga MX Team
- 1-2-1, 5 points through four matches in Apertura; Currently 10th place in 2024 Apertura standings
- Finished 2023 Apertura in seventh (7-2-8, 23 points)
- Finished 2023 Clausura in 13th (5-1-11, 16 points)
- Nicknames: Atleti de San Luis
- 1-2-1, 5 points through four matches in Apertura; Currently 10th place in 2024 Apertura standings
- Based out of San Luis Potosí, Mexico
- Relocated from Veracruz in 2013 after San Luis F.C. moved to Tuxtla Gutierrez
- Play their home matches at Estadio Alfonso Lastras
- Honors:
- Ascenso MX Champions: Aperutra 2018, Clausura 2019
