For the first time since match play was suspended March 12 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Major League Soccer action will resume July 8 with the historic and unprecedented MLS is Back Tournament. This one-of-a-kind competition will see all 26 clubs descend on ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, marking the emphatic return of men's professional soccer in the United States after a near four-month hiatus.
As the opening match approaches, SportingKC.com is presenting a 20-day preview of the World-Cup style tournament from June 18 through July 7 called Countdown to MLS is Back presented by Children's Mercy Sports Medicine Center.
Sporting Kansas City will kick off their Group D campaign on July 12 against rivals Minnesota United FC before facing the Colorado Rapids on July 17 and Real Salt Lake on July 22, with all three games shown live nationally on ESPN, ESPN Deportes and the ESPN app. To visit the series homepage as it expands, head to SportingKC.com/MLSisBack.
In the pilot episode of our 20-day countdown, we laid out exactly how the MLS is Back Tournament will work. The competition will mimic the World Cup from a format and scheduling perspective, with a round-robin group stage followed by the single-elimination knockout rounds.
But why is the tournament important? Why should it matter for fans and what does Sporting Kansas City have to play for when they take the field next month in Disney World?
These questions have multilayered answers. Let's dive straight into what's at stake.
1. Regular season points in the group stage
Each MLS club will play three group stage matches in Orlando that count toward the 2020 regular season standings. For Sporting, those fixtures come against Western Conference foes Real Salt Lake, Minnesota United FC and the Colorado Rapids.
Remember, MLS plans to continue the regular season in home markets following the conclusion of the MLS is Back Tournament. The revised league schedule will be unveiled at a later date, and it's distinctly possible that the regular season will be shortened from its typical 34-game slate.
In the context of a shortened campaign, wins go a long way and regular season contests become increasingly pivotal. Sporting is currently a perfect 2-0-0 and sits atop the early Supporters' Shield standings. If Manager Peter Vermes' men can do damage in the group stage next month, they could set themselves up for a realistic shot at regular season silverware later this year.
2. A berth in the Concacaf Champions League
Once the 26-team field is whittled to 16 teams for the knockout rounds, matches no longer count toward the regular season table. However, clubs will still be battling for the 2021 Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League berth that goes to the champion. Furthermore, this single-elimination bracket will give teams valuable experience in win-or-go-home situations ahead of the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs further down the road.
3. Prize money
The MLS is Back Tournament will dole out a total of $1.1 million in prize money to participating teams. The further Sporting advances in the competition, the more money players and coaches will bring back to Kansas City.
4. An indelible place in history
Think about this for a second: the MLS is Back Tournament is simply unprecedented. An entire league's worth of teams will descend on a single location for an inside-the-bubble, quarantine-friendly competition amidst a pandemic. There has never been a sporting event quite like it, and beyond 2020, there may never be an event like this again.
With that in mind, it's safe to say the MLS is Back Tournament champion will be remembered eternally as the team that united in the face of remarkable adversity, and after several months of incomprehensible hardship.
For Sporting Kansas City, it's an opportunity to paint the wall in a way that will speak volumes, not only for what they did on the field but for how they accomplished it, and for whom—the fans cheering them on from home and the countless others adversely affected by one of the most trying times in history.
