Leagues Cup begins on Tuesday, and Austin FC's portion of it begins on Thursday. Here's a quick guide to how the newly streamlined tournament will work.
The 2026 edition of Leagues Cup begins on Tuesday, with the slogan, "Three countries, two leagues, one champion," and a streamlined format.
You may be asking, "So how does it work this time?" about the tournament that has changed parts of its format each time it has been played. In under 250 words, here are the most important things to know.
It takes six total matches to go home with hardware and a spot in Concacaf Champions Cup (plus additional berths for the runner-up and third-place finisher). Only two rounds (the semifinal and final/third-place match) even can be played against a team from one’s own league.
The rounds progress as follows:
Phase One (starts Tuesday)
Every team plays three teams from the other league;
Austin FC plays Tijuana, Puebla, and Club América (in that order), all at Q2 Stadium;
Austin is "home" against Tijuana (Thursday, Aug. 6) and Puebla (Sunday, Aug. 9), and "away" against Club América (Thursday, Aug. 13);
There are no ties; draws result in PK shootouts, and the winner gets an extra point (two rather than one) in the standings; and
The top four MLS and top four Liga MX teams (based on total win/loss/draw/PK-winning-draw points) advance to the quarterfinals.
Quarterfinals (Aug 25-27)
Matches will still be MLS vs. Liga MX; and
Draws result in a PK shootout with no extra time to determine the winner.
Semifinals (Sept 1-2)
This will be the first time in the tournament that an MLS team can play another MLS team (or a Liga MX team can play another Liga MX team).
Final and Third Place Match (both on Sept 6)
Winner, runner-up and third place qualify for Concacaf Champions Cup; and
Winner gets a bye straight into the CCC Round of 16.
Verde All Day is a reader-supported online publication covering Austin FC. Additional support is provided by Austin Telco Federal Credit Union. For more coverage, check out Emergency Podcast! (an Austin FC Podcast) wherever you get your podcasts.
Austin FC has announced its official 2026 Leagues Cup roster. However, due to when roster submissions were due, expect at least one change to the initial 30 named.
Austin FC was less than four minutes away from escaping Colorado with a scoreless draw. Yet interim head coach Davy Arnaud compared this unfavorably to a 3-0 loss the week before.
Austin FC appeared to be headed for a scoreless draw that would have at least kept them in the playoff mix. A late penalty instead gifted all three points to the Rapids.
On Saturday night, the 13th and 14th place teams in the West square off. We checked in with our favorite Colorado Rapids site to get some intel on a familiar foe.
The 2026 edition of Leagues Cup begins on Tuesday, with the slogan, "Three countries, two leagues, one champion," and a streamlined format.
You may be asking, "So how does it work this time?" about the tournament that has changed parts of its format each time it has been played. In under 250 words, here are the most important things to know.
It takes six total matches to go home with hardware and a spot in Concacaf Champions Cup (plus additional berths for the runner-up and third-place finisher). Only two rounds (the semifinal and final/third-place match) even can be played against a team from one’s own league.
The rounds progress as follows:
Phase One (starts Tuesday)
Quarterfinals (Aug 25-27)
Semifinals (Sept 1-2)
Final and Third Place Match (both on Sept 6)
Verde All Day is a reader-supported online publication covering Austin FC. Additional support is provided by Austin Telco Federal Credit Union. For more coverage, check out Emergency Podcast! (an Austin FC Podcast) wherever you get your podcasts.
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