MLS NEXT Cup games and shows ready to begin on June 15 in Nashville

NEW YORK – For the first time in MLS NEXT history, the 2024 MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs and Showcases will take place in Nashville, Tennessee, where the best youth teams from the U.S. and Canada will compete to be crowned MLS NEXT Cup Champions.

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

The 2024 MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs are the culmination of the 2023-24 MLS NEXT season, featuring the top 32 teams in each of four different age groups (U-15, U-16, U-17, U-19). All 128 teams qualified for the MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs based on league performance or by winning their group in the MLS NEXT Flex, a qualifying event that took place May 10–14. Nearly 9,000 matches were played during the 2023–24 MLS NEXT season, kicking off the MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs.

MLS NEXT Cup playoff matches will be 80 minutes in the U-15 age group and 90 minutes in the other three age groups. If a match ends in a draw in regular time, all matches will go to penalty shootouts, except the four championship matches, which will feature two five-minute overtime periods. If the championship games are still tied after overtime, the teams will be decided on penalties.

The 22 MLS NEXT Cup playoff games, including all four championship games, will be broadcast live as part of MLS Season Pass on Apple TV, the Apple and Major League subscription service available in more than 100 countries and regions. Across the four age groups represented in the playoffs, two 32-game rounds, two 16-game rounds, six quarterfinal games and each of the eight semifinal contests will also be available to watch as part of the MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.

The full MLS NEXT Cup playoffs and exhibition schedule is available HERE and the final league rankings for the 2023-24 season 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 – won championships in their age divisions. Additionally, three different MLS NEXT Elite Academies finished second: Strikers FC (U-16), Real Colorado (U-17) and FC DELCO (U-19), their highest finish since 2021 (four). The U-19 New England Revolution team will be looking to become the first club to win three consecutive championships in one age group. Notable standout MLS NEXT Cup players who later starred in MLS include Inter Miami CF’s Benjamin Cremaschi (2021 MLS NEXT U-16 Cup MVP at Weston FC), New York Red Bulls’ Julian Hall (2023 MLS NEXT U-15 Cup MVP), Taha Habroune from Columbus Crew (2022 MLS NEXT U-17 Cup runner-up) and many others.

Teams that do not qualify for the MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs may also participate in the MLS NEXT Cup Showcase. Showcase provides MLS NEXT players the 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 games over four days. Clubs eliminated in the first two rounds of the MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs are also eligible to participate in the Showcase.

The event will also feature five MLS NEXT “Best Of” matches, with top players from MLS NEXT Cup Showcase teams competing in 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, MLS NEXT Fest and MLS NEXT Flex. “Best Of” matches provide players with a unique opportunity to compete against each other while top collegiate, international and professional coaches evaluate their performances.