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Playoffs · 2021

The 2021playoffs.

New York City FC beat Portland Timbers in MLS Cup 2021. Fourteen clubs qualified, the top seven in each conference, in a fixed single-elimination bracket with no re-seeding.

Final

Western Conference

Round OneSingle match
Conference semifinalsSingle match
Conference finalsSingle match
One matchDec 4
4Portland2
7Salt Lake0
POR won 2–0
One matchNov 25
1Colorado0
4Portland1
POR won 1–0
One matchNov 21
4Portland3
5Minnesota1
POR won 3–1
One matchNov 28
3Sporting KC1
7Salt Lake2
RSL won 2–1
One matchNov 20
3Sporting KC3
6Vancouver1
SKC won 3–1
One matchNov 23
2Seattle0(5)
7Salt Lake0(6)
RSL won 6–5 on penalties after 0–0 a.e.t.

Eastern Conference

Round OneSingle match
Conference semifinalsSingle match
Conference finalsSingle match
One matchDec 5
2Philadelphia1
4NYCFC2
NYC won 2–1
One matchNov 28
2Philadelphia1(2)
3Nashville1(0)
PHI won 2–0 on penalties after 1–1 a.e.t.
One matchNov 20
2Philadelphia1
7Red Bulls0
PHI won 1–0 after extra time
One matchNov 23
3Nashville3
6Orlando1
NSH won 3–1
One matchNov 30
1New England2(3)
4NYCFC2(5)
NYC won 5–3 on penalties after 2–2 a.e.t.
One matchNov 21
4NYCFC2
5Atlanta0
NYC won 2–0

MLS Cup

Dec 11

One matchDec 11
4Portland1(2)
4NYCFC1(4)
NYC won 4–2 on penalties after 1–1 a.e.t.
2021 championNew York City FC

MLS Cup 2021

New York City FC over Portland Timbers.

1–1(2–4 penalties after extra time)

Venue
Providence Park, Portland
Attendance
25,218
MVP
Sean Johnson
Field
14 of 27 clubs

The format

How 2021 worked.

Fourteen clubs qualified, the top seven in each conference, in a fixed single-elimination bracket with no re-seeding. Seeds 2–7 played Round One (2 v 7, 3 v 6, 4 v 5) while the 1 seed had a bye to the conference semifinals; every round including MLS Cup was a single match at the higher seed, with extra time and penalties if level.

  • Returned to the 2019 format: 14 qualifiers (seven per conference), no play-in round.
  • Austin FC joined (27 clubs).
  1. 01Round OneSingle matchNov 20–23
  2. 02Conference semifinalsSingle matchNov 25–30
  3. 03Conference finalsSingle matchDec 4–5
  4. 04MLS CupSingle matchDec 11
Seeding
Top seven per conference by points. Fixed bracket: the 1 seed met the 4/5 winner and the 2/7 winner met the 3/6 winner.
Hosting
Higher seed hosted every match; MLS Cup hosted by the finalist with the better regular-season record.
Ties
Single matches: 30 minutes of extra time, then a penalty shoot-out.

Open the 2021 season · Wikipedia — 2021 MLS Cup Playoffs · Wikipedia — MLS Cup 2021 · American Soccer Analysis match data (fixtures/asa)