MLS Considers Radical Playoff Overhaul for 2027/28 Season

Major League Soccer could be heading toward one of the biggest changes to its playoff system in league history.

According to reporting by The Guardian, MLS is considering a new postseason format that would expand the playoff field to as many as 20 teams and introduce a “double-elimination element” designed to give the league’s best regular-season teams a second chance if they lose early. Nothing has been finalized and MLS have not confirmed the changes, but the proposal would represent a major departure from the system MLS uses today.

A Much Bigger Playoff Field

Beginning with the 2027-28 season, MLS would move away from its current Eastern and Western Conference playoff structure and move to a five-division setup. The Fall of 2027 also marks the start of the league’s move toward a fall-to-spring calendar.

At the end of the regular season, however, those divisions would effectively disappear when it comes to determining the playoffs. Every team would be placed into one overall standings table, with the top 20 clubs qualifying.

That group would then be reduced to 16 as eight teams would play in a preliminary play-in round, with the four winners joining the 12 teams that qualified automatically.

What follows next is very interesting:

The eight highest-ranked teams would enter a double-elimination stage. In simple terms, a team that loses its first playoff game would not immediately be eliminated. Instead, it would drop into a second-chance bracket, while the winners would move directly into the quarterfinals.

Teams would also be reseeded after each round, meaning a stronger regular-season finish could continue to provide an advantage, including home-field advantage.

MLS Looks to Australia for Inspiration

The concept may sound unusual to American soccer fans, but it isn’t entirely new. MLS has reportedly been discussing the idea with Australia’s Australian Football League (AFL), which has used a similar “double-chance” concept for years. In the AFL system, the highest-ranked teams receive an opportunity to survive an early playoff defeat, while lower-ranked teams must win every game to remain alive.

The idea could help MLS solve one of its biggest postseason complaints: how much value should the regular season actually have?

Right now, the 2026 MLS playoffs include nine teams from each conference, with the eighth- and ninth-place teams meeting in a single-game Wild Card match before the first round’s best-of-three series.

The proposed system would put considerably more emphasis on finishing near the top of the overall standings. A team that performs well for an entire season would have a much greater safety net once the playoffs begin.

A New Era for MLS

The timing is significant. MLS plans to play a shortened “sprint season” in 2027 before moving to its new fall-to-spring calendar. The proposed 2028 playoffs would reportedly begin in late April, with MLS Cup scheduled for around May 21.

That would move the championship away from the crowded American football calendar and give MLS a spring showcase of its own.

The changes also arrive as the league prepares for a new commissioner. Larry Berg, currently a co-managing owner of LAFC, will take over from Don Garber on January 1, 2027.

For casual fans, however, there is an obvious concern: will all of this be too complicated?

MLS has already been criticized for making its playoffs difficult to follow. Adding play-ins, reseeding and a second-chance bracket could make the system even harder to explain.

Still, if MLS gets the balance right, the reward could be significant: more meaningful regular-season games, more teams with something to play for, and a playoff race that keeps fans interested well into the spring.

For now, it’s only a proposal—not a done deal. But if MLS follows through, the 2028 postseason could look very different from anything the league has staged before.

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