MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs and Showcase ready to kickoff June 15 in Nashville

NEW YORK – For the first time in MLS NEXT history, the 2024 MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs and Showcase will be held in Nashville, Tenn., as the best youth teams across the U.S. and Canada compete to earn the title of MLS NEXT Cup Champions.

The single-elimination knockout tournaments will be held from June 15-23 at Richard Siegel Soccer Complex in Murfreesboro, Tenn. with all four championship matches contested on Sunday, June 23 at Nashville SC’s GEODIS Park, the largest soccer-specific stadium in the U.S. and Canada.

The 2024 MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs is the culmination of the 2023-24 MLS NEXT season, featuring 32 of the top teams in each of the four different age groups (U-15, U-16, U-17, U-19). All 128 teams qualified for the MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs based on results from league play or by winning their respective group at MLS NEXT Flex, a qualifying event that took place from May 10-14. Entering the MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs, almost 9,000 matches have been played during the 2023-24 MLS NEXT season.

MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs matches will be 80 minutes in the U-15 age group and 90 minutes in the other three age groups. If the match is tied at the end of regulation, all games will head to penalty kicks, except for the four championship matches, which will feature two five-minute periods of extra time. If the championship matches are still tied after the extra time periods, they will then head to penalty kicks to decide a winner.

22 MLS NEXT Cup Playoff games, including all four championship matches, will stream live on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV, the subscription service from Apple and Major League available in more than 100 countries and regions. Across the four age groups represented in the playoffs, two round of 32 matches, two round of 16 matches, six quarterfinal games, and each of the eight semifinal contests will also be available to watch on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.

The full schedule for the MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs and Showcase is available HERE and the final 2023-24 final league standings are available HERE.

In 2023, four different MLS clubs – U-15 New York Red Bulls, U-16 Atlanta United, U-17 LA Galaxy, and U-19 New England Revolution – took home championships in their age group. Additionally, three different MLS NEXT Elite Academies finished runners-up: Strikers FC (U-16), Real Colorado (U-17), and FC DELCO (U-19), which was the most since 2021 (four). The U-19 New England Revolution side will look to become the first club to win three-straight championships in a single age group. Notable standout players at MLS NEXT Cup who have gone on to star in MLS include Inter Miami CF’s Benjamin Cremaschi (2021 U-16 MLS NEXT Cup MVP with Weston FC), New York Red Bulls’ Julian Hall (2023 U-15 MLS NEXT Cup MVP), Columbus Crew’s Taha Habroune (2022 U-17 MLS NEXT Cup runners-up), and many more.

Teams that do not qualify for the MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs can also participate in the MLS NEXT Cup Showcase. The Showcase provides MLS NEXT players an opportunity to compete in front of hundreds of collegiate, international, and professional coaches and scouts. Additionally, the U-13 and U-14 age groups will return this year to compete in the MLS NEXT Cup Showcase. All clubs participating in the MLS NEXT Cup Showcase will play three matches over a four-day span. Clubs who are eliminated in the first two rounds of the MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs are also eligible to participate in the Showcase.

The event will also host five MLS NEXT ‘Best Of’ matches in which top players from MLS NEXT Cup Showcase teams will compete at the U-13, U-14, U-15, U-16, and U-17/U-18 age groups. These players are selected based on their performance in league play, at MLS NEXT Fest, and at MLS NEXT Flex. The ‘Best Of’ matches provide a unique opportunity for players to compete against one another as top collegiate, international, and professional coaches evaluate their performances.