The 2022 MLS Schedule is set to be released sometime today, Dec. 15! All 28 teams will know the 34 games they will play. With this schedule release being set for today, here’s a look at what might look different in the 2022 schedule as opposed to previous years in MLS!
MLS Schedule 2022 comes out today!
Ahead of the release of all 28 teams’ 2022 schedules, it’s important to look at the changes that this upcoming season will have. There’s a new team in the east, and it pushes one side that was in the east in 2021 to the west in 2022.
The start date is sooner, there will be fewer midweek matches for every team, and there won’t be many games during crucial international windows. This will be a season like no other as the Men’s World Cup in 2022 occurs in the fall, and not the summer. Here’s a look at some of these cool details.
New team, new conference
Charlotte FC kicks off their inaugural season on February 26 at DC United. They’ll be starting their campaign as the 28th team in MLS. Their inclusion in the eastern conference pushes Nashville SC to the western conference for the 2022 season. While this seems a bit odd, it’s very MLS to move teams to other conferences. As a league that has a different team come in almost every year, there’s a lot of realignment that happens.
This time around, Nashville’s move to the west helps balance the conferences with 14 teams in the east and the west. We’ll see if this schedule is more balanced with teams from opposite conferences playing more games against each other; in 2021 there were only two inter-conference games for the 27 teams. We’ll see how all of this lines up when the schedules drop.
A season that ends before 2022 World Cup
In 2022, MLS will start its season the earliest it’s ever done so on Saturday, Feb. 26. This is because MLS wants to fit an entire 34 game season and their playoffs in all before the Men’s 2022 World Cup begins in Qatar on Nov. 21. This means the regular season starts early and will end on a decision day on Oct. 9.
MLS Cup is set for Nov. 5, 2022, so the playoffs will have to be played mostly in October, which will make for better weather for such important matches. The Cup will be won, nine days before Qatar 2022 schedule will be set. This is very important as MLS continues to grow and produce players that will play for their national teams that could feature in the World Cup. It’s going to be an exciting and fast-paced MLS season, and upon its end, fans will be treated to a fall/winter World Cup!
This is all nice and good, but when will the schedules actually be released today?
When will the schedule drop?
It’s the most wonderful time of the year! MLS has not put out a time for the schedule to release as of yet. They are probably doing this on purpose as fans storm to Twitter to complain when the schedule doesn’t release on time. The hashtag “The MLS schedule is late because” is a fun one to watch when that happens. However, since there is no time posted by MLS, we could see schedules pop up in the morning, afternoon, or night, today. Now if it’s delayed by a day, then the infamous hashtag will be used in full force yet again!
Keep an eye on this today as MLS is set to release the 2022 schedule with only 73 days until the season kicks off!
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