Sporting Kansas City captain Matt Besler had plenty of exciting information to share during his customary appearance on Sports Radio 810 WHB this morning.
Joining hosts Nate Bukaty and Steven St. John on The Border Patrol, Besler dished the details on Major League Soccer’s highly anticipated return to play this summer. Listen to the full podcast below.
Besler said MLS will host a World Cup style tournament in Orlando featuring all 26 clubs, with every match taking place at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. Teams would be divided into groups, Besler said, with each club playing three group stage matches that would count toward the regular season standings.
The tournament in Orlando will then see the top 16 teams from the group stage advance to the single-elimination knockout rounds, with the round of 16 followed by the quarterfinals, semifinals and final. The knockout round matches will not count in the regular season standings.
Besler indicated that once the tournament ends, the hope is for the 2020 MLS regular season to resume in home markets later this summer.
MLS and the MLS Players Association completed a new collective bargaining agreement on Wednesday after the MLSPA voted to approve a revised plan. The new CBA will run through 2025 and includes agreement on a plan to resume the 2020 season with the Orlando tournament, MLS commissioner Don Garber confirmed in a video conference with media on Wednesday afternoon.
