Details on the newest North American continental soccer tournament were announced jointly by Major League Soccer and Liga MX on Thursday afternoon. Following the Leagues Cup debut in 2019, the 2020 tournament will expand to 16 teams and will feature eight qualified top-flight teams from each of the top two soccer leagues in North America.
Beginning in 2020, the eight qualified teams from MLS will be determined by the top four finishers in the Eastern Conference regular season standings and top four in the Western Conference. Clubs that qualify for the 2020 Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League will be excluded from qualifying for the Leagues Cup.
The eight Liga MX teams will include the 2019 Apertura champion, 2020 Clausura champion, 2019-20 Copa MX champion, and the next five best teams in the combined Apertura 2019-Clausura 2020 standings that have not already qualified for Leagues Cup.
With this new qualification process, Nashville Soccer Club will be eligible for entrance into the 2021 Leagues Cup based on the team’s finish in its inaugural MLS season in 2020.
Leagues Cup will make its debut in 2019 with four selected MLS and four selected Liga MX clubs competing in the U.S. from July 23-September 18 in a single-elimination tournament.
