MLS Cup 2022

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MLS Cup 2022
LAFC vs Philadelphia Union (2018) by Subashwilfred (20180630233148).jpg
Banc of California Stadium in Los Angeles, the host venue for MLS Cup 2022
Event MLS Cup
After extra time
Los Angeles FC won 3–0 on penalties
Date November 5, 2022 (2022-11-05)
Venue Banc of California Stadium, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Man of the Match John McCarthy (Los Angeles FC)
Referee Ismail Elfath
Attendance 22,384
Weather Sunny, 66 °F (19 °C)[1]
2021
2023

MLS Cup 2022 was the 27th edition of the MLS Cup, the championship match of Major League Soccer (MLS) at the conclusion of the 2022 MLS Cup Playoffs. The match took place on November 5, 2022, at Banc of California Stadium in Los Angeles, California, United States. It was contested by hosts Los Angeles FC and the Philadelphia Union to determine the champion of the 2022 season.

Los Angeles FC won their first MLS Cup title in a penalty shootout following a 3–3 draw through extra time. It shares the record with the 2003 final for the highest-scoring final in MLS Cup history and featured the two latest goals to be scored in an MLS Cup Playoffs match. The shootout ended in a 3–0 shutout for LAFC and their substitute goalkeeper John McCarthy, who made several saves in the shootout and was named the most valuable player of the match.

Road to the final

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The MLS Cup is the post-season championship of Major League Soccer (MLS), a professional club soccer league in the United States and Canada. The 2022 season was the 27th in MLS history, and was contested by 28 teams organized into the eastern and western conferences.[2] Each team played 34 matches during the regular season from late February to early October, primarily against intra-conference opponents. The schedule was adjusted due to the 2022 FIFA World Cup, which begins in late November.[3] The playoffs were contested between the top seven clubs in each conference through four rounds from October to early November. Each round had a single-elimination match hosted by the higher-seeded team; the top team in each conference was also given a bye to the Conference Semifinals.[4]

The finalists, Los Angeles FC (LAFC) and the Philadelphia Union, were both appearing in their first MLS Cup final and finished atop the regular season table. The two teams were tied on points, but LAFC won the Supporters' Shield on the first tiebreaker, the total number of wins.[5] The two teams met once during the regular season, a 2–2 draw in early May at Banc of California Stadium in Los Angeles; it was the third consecutive draw between the two teams since 2019.[6] MLS Cup 2022 was the fourth final to be contested between two regular season winners and the first since the 2003 final, which was also played in the Los Angeles area;[7] it was also the fourth between two first-time finalists.[8][9] It was also the first final since MLS Cup 2014 to not feature either Seattle Sounders FC or the Portland Timbers representing the Western Conference.[10]

Los Angeles FC

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File:Steven cherundolo.jpg
Los Angeles FC hired head coach Steve Cherundolo (pictured in 2018) prior to the 2022 season.

Los Angeles FC entered MLS as an expansion team in 2018, becoming the third club based in the Los Angeles area following the folding of Chivas USA a few years prior.[11] Under head coach Bob Bradley, the club won the Supporters' Shield in 2019 and broke the regular season points record. They advanced to the Conference Final in the playoffs but were eliminated by eventual MLS Cup champions Seattle Sounders FC.[12] They finished 7th in the West during the following year's season, which was shortened due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but still qualified for the playoffs. In the first round, LAFC were again eliminated by Seattle.[13] The club went on to finish as runners-up in the 2020 CONCACAF Champions League, but missed the playoffs in 2021.[14]

Steve Cherundolo was hired to replace Bob Bradley as head coach prior to the start of the 2022 season. The club finished as Supporters' Shield champions, winning on the wins tiebreaker by one.[15] Through the regular season, Cherundolo used 32 different starting lineups.[16] During the summer transfer window, LAFC signed several players from European leagues, including winger Gareth Bale, defender Giorgio Chiellini, midfielder Cristian Tello, and striker Denis Bouanga.[6]

As the top seed in the Western Conference, LAFC earned a bye directly to the Conference Semifinals, where they hosted cross-town rival LA Galaxy. A goal by Bouanga, who received a through ball in the penalty area from captain Carlos Vela, opened the scoring for LAFC in the 23rd minute. The Galaxy equalized just before halftime through a misplayed header by Eddie Segura that was converted by Samuel Grandsir. Bouanga's second goal of the match, a tap-in from a ground cross sent by Ryan Hollingshead in the 80th minute, restored LAFC's lead for five minutes until a strike by Galaxy substitute Dejan Joveljić for the from outside the penalty area. LAFC won the match 3–2 with a goal in stoppage time by Cristian Arango, who converted a rebounded shot by Bouanga that Jonathan Bond had saved.[17][18]

The club advanced to play second-seeded Austin FC, who had defeated LAFC twice in the regular season, in the Western Conference Final at Banc of California Stadium.[19] The match's first goal was scored in the 29th minute by Arango, who headed in a corner kick taken by Vela, but Austin goalkeeper Brad Stuver's seven saves kept the score at 1–0 into the second half.[20] A Vela corner kick in the 62nd minute was headed in by Maximiliano Urruti, who had just entered the match as a substitute and scored an own goal. A few minutes later, Sebastien Ibeagha stepped on the foot of Austin FC's Diego Fagúndez in the penalty area, but a penalty kick was not awarded following a video assistant referee review.[21] Kwadwo Opoku added a third goal for LAFC in the 81st minute by collecting an Austin clearance that bounced to him at the top of the penalty area. Bouanga struck in the fifth minute of stoppage time, but his goal was ruled out after Opoku was deemed to be in an offside position during the play, leaving LAFC with a 3–0 victory.[21][22] The club is the first Supporters' Shield winner since Toronto FC in 2017 to earn an MLS Cup berth.[23]

Philadelphia Union

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The Philadelphia Union entered MLS as an expansion team in 2010 and earned their first playoffs berth in their second season, where they were eliminated in the Conference Semifinals.[24][25] The club then failed to qualify for the playoffs in the following four seasons, but returned in 2016 under head coach Jim Curtin—their third manager in three years.[26][27] They also finished as runners-up in the U.S. Open Cup three times, most recently in 2018.[28] The Union won their first playoff match in 2019—their fourth post-season appearance—and advanced to the Conference Semifinals, where they lost to Atlanta United FC four days later.[29] The club earned the Supporters' Shield, their first trophy, during the shortened 2020 season and opened the playoffs against the eighth-seed New England Revolution, who defeated the Union in an upset.[30][31]

The club finished second in the Eastern Conference in 2021 and advanced to the Conference Finals, where they were eliminated by eventual champions New York City FC after 11 players were ruled ineligible to play due to COVID-19 quarantine restrictions.[32] The Union retained most of their roster and steadily added more attacking talent through the 2021 season and subsequent off-season, signing midfielder Dániel Gazdag from Hungary, forward Julián Carranza on loan from Inter Miami CF, and Mikael Uhre from Brøndby IF in Denmark for $2.8 million—a club record.[33] The team also traded away leading goalscorer Kacper Przybylko and midfielder Jamiro Monteiro to other MLS clubs and sought lower-priced players from overseas to supplement homegrown prospects as replacements.[34][35]

The Union opened the 2022 season with a draw against Minnesota United FC and five consecutive wins, mostly against Eastern Conference opponents, to take the lead in league standings. Their success was attributed to a strong defense and performances from goalkeeper Andre Blake to compensate for a lack of goals scored.[36] Following a loss to Toronto FC that snapped the winning streak,[37] the club drew seven of eight matches as the team struggled to retain leads.[38] The Union remained first in the East and broke the streak with a 2–1 win against New York City FC at home that was decided with a Cory Burke goal in stoppage time.[39]

On July 8, the Union won 7–0 in a match against D.C. United, setting a new club record for margin of victory and tying the league record.[40] The club won their following four matches, including a 6–0 victory against Houston Dynamo FC, which brought them to second in the league standings and three points behind LAFC.[41] The Union sent three players—Blake and defenders Kai Wagner and Jakob Glesnes—to the MLS All-Star Game and finished August with four wins and two losses, including back-to-back 6–0 wins over D.C. United and the Colorado Rapids.[42][43] The club clinched a playoff berth with their final win in August and remained in contention for the Supporters' Shield until a 4–0 loss to expansion team Charlotte FC in the penultimate week of the season.[44] The Union won 4–0 in their regular season finale against Toronto FC at home and tied LAFC on points in the Supporters' Shield race, but lost on the wins tiebreaker.[34][45]

The club finished the regular season with the league's best goal difference (+46), the fewest goals conceded in a 34-match season in MLS history (26), and an unbeaten record at home with the most goals scored (49)—tying the league record.[46][47] For their regular season performances, Jim Curtin won the Sigi Schmid Coach of the Year Award for the second time, Blake earned his third Goalkeeper of the Year Award, and Glesnes was named the Defender of the Year.[48][49] Four players were named to the MLS Best XI—tied for second-most from a single team in league history—Blake, Glesnes, Wagner, and Gazdag.[50] As the top seed in the East, the club earned a bye to the Conference Semifinals, where they hosted fifth-place FC Cincinnati, who were in the playoffs for the first time.[51] Leon Flach scored the lone goal of the match in the 59th minute during a scramble in the penalty area as the Union advanced with a 1–0 win; Blake made six saves to earn his 16th shutout of the year.[52]

The Eastern Conference Final at Subaru Park was a rematch of the previous year's Conference Final with New York City FC, who were missing forward Talles Magno and defender Maxime Chanot.[53][54] New York City FC took the lead in the 57th minute through a strike from Maximiliano Moralez following a six-player passing sequence that began with goalkeeper Sean Johnson. A free kick from Glesnes in the 65th minute reached Julián Carranza, who scored the equalizer for the Union; Carranza then provided an assist on a goal two minutes later that was finished from close range by Gazdag.[53] The match's final goal was scored in the 76th minute by substitute Cory Burke, who won the ball in midfield and dribbled into the penalty area to provide an assist, but was able to finish a mis-timed clearance from the NYCFC defense.[55] The 3–1 result gave the Union their 11th consecutive home match, equaling the longest streak in MLS history, and an undefeated record at home in 2022.[56][57]

Summary of results

Note: In all results below, the score of the finalist is given first (H: home; A: away).
Los Angeles FC Round Philadelphia Union
1st place in Western Conference

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     Qualified for playoffs
     Qualified for CONCACAF Champions League

Regular season 1st place in Eastern Conference

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     Qualified for playoffs
     Qualified for CONCACAF Champions League

Opponent Score MLS Cup Playoffs Opponent Score
Bye First round Bye
LA Galaxy 3–2 (H) Conference Semifinals FC Cincinnati 1–0 (H)
Austin FC 3–0 (H) Conference Finals New York City FC 3–1 (H)

Venue

MLS Cup 2022 was hosted on November 5, 2022, by LAFC at their home stadium, Banc of California Stadium in Los Angeles, California. The soccer-specific stadium seats 22,000 people and opened in April 2018.[58] Tickets were released days before the match and sold out immediately;[59] they ranged from $450 to $10,000 on secondary markets.[60] Due to a home USC Trojans football game later in the day at the neighboring Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, LAFC announced that there would be no parking spaces reserved for MLS Cup attendees at the stadium. The club encouraged the use of Metro light rail and bus options, as well as a shuttle bus from Dodger Stadium with free parking.[61][62] LAFC opened up the stadium at 10:30 a.m. to encourage early arrivals and sold half-price concessions during the first hour.[63]The Union organized hotel-and-ticket packages for 460 fans to travel to the MLS Cup final in Los Angeles.[64][65] The club and supporters group Sons of Ben also organized four free watch parties at various venues in the Philadelphia area, including home stadium Subaru Park.[66]

Broadcasting

The match was broadcast in the United States on Fox in English and Univision and TUDN in Spanish with pre-game and post-game coverage.[59] The Canadian broadcast was carried on TSN in English and TVA Sports in French.[67] The English commentary team for Fox included their crew for the FIFA World Cup: play-by-play announcer John Strong, analyst Stuart Holden, and studio host Rodolfo Landeros. For Univision, Luis Omar Tapia (es) and Ramses Sandoval provided play-by-play commentary for alternating halves with analysts Diego Balado (es) and Marcelo Balboa.[59] Fox used 24 conventional cameras (including four for slow motion replays), a skycam, and a helicopter to cover the match, along with 14 field microphones.[68] The match was also carried by ESPN International in Latin America and Africa; DAZN in Europe and Brazil; Abu Dhabi Sports in the Middle East and North Africa; and Sky Sports in the United Kingdom and Ireland.[69][70]

Satellite radio coverage was provided by SiriusXM FC with commentators Joe Tolleson, Tony Meola, and Keith Costigan.[59] For the Los Angeles radio market, the match was carried in English by ESPN 710 and in Spanish by KFWB 980.[69] In Philadelphia, Fox Sports Radio had the broadcast in English;[71] the Union also had a radio stream on their website with their local television commentators, JP Dellacamera and Danny Higginbotham.[59][72]

Match

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Summary

The MLS Cup final kicked off at 1:05 p.m. under clear skies and in front of 22,384 spectators in attendance, including 500 fans from Philadelphia.[59][1] The two teams fielded most of their normal starting lineups, with the exception of midfielder and captain Alejandro Bedoya for the Union, who had been injured but remained available as a substitute.[73] Two-time MLS Referee of the Year Ismail Elfath was selected to officiate the MLS Cup, his first for the tournament.[74] Prior to kickoff, the LAFC supporters group 3252 unveiled a tifo depicting Dragon Ball manga character Gogeta, who shares the club's black-and-gold color scheme, and set off smoke flares.[75]

LAFC won a free kick near the penalty area, awarded for a foul by José Andrés Martínez on Cristian Arango, and used it to take the lead in the 28th minute; Kellyn Acosta's shot was deflected into the goal by Jack McGlynn, who had jumped as part of the wall.[76] LAFC won a free kick from a similar spot in the 39th minute that they used to nearly score, but Diego Palacios's shot from close range was saved by Andre Blake.[77] The Union responded with their own chance in the 43rd minute as Carranza started a counter-attack and fed the ball to Mikael Uhre, who dribbled into the penalty area but lost the ball to Crépeau's block.[76] The match entered half-time with LAFC holding a 1–0 lead but the Union held the majority of possession.[77][78]

Details

Los Angeles FC
Philadelphia Union
GK 16 Canada Maxime Crépeau Red card 116'
RB 24 United States Ryan Hollingshead
CB 3 Colombia Jesús David Murillo
CB 25 United States Sebastien Ibeagha Booked 87'
LB 12 Ecuador Diego Palacios
CM 20 Ecuador José Cifuentes Booked 65'
CM 6 Spain Ilie Sánchez
CM 23 United States Kellyn Acosta Substituted off 91'
RF 10 Mexico Carlos Vela (c) Substituted off 97'
CF 9 Colombia Cristian Arango Substituted off 74'
LF 99 Gabon Denis Bouanga
Substitutes:
GK 77 United States John McCarthy Substituted in 117'
DF 2 Argentina Franco Escobar
DF 4 Colombia Eddie Segura
DF 14 Italy Giorgio Chiellini
MF 7 Ghana Latif Blessing
MF 32 Ecuador Sebas Méndez
FW 11 Wales Gareth Bale Substituted in 97'
FW 22 Ghana Kwadwo Opoku Substituted in 74' Substituted off 117'
FW 37 Spain Cristian Tello Substituted in 91'
Manager:
United States Steve Cherundolo
300px
GK 18 Jamaica Andre Blake (c)
RB 15 Cameroon Olivier Mbaizo
CB 5 Norway Jakob Glesnes
CB 3 England Jack Elliott Booked 14'
LB 27 Germany Kai Wagner
DM 8 Venezuela José Martínez
CM 16 United States Jack McGlynn Substituted off 84'
CM 31 United States Leon Flach
AM 6 Hungary Dániel Gazdag
CF 9 Argentina Julián Carranza Booked 90+1'
CF 7 Denmark Mikael Uhre Substituted off 71'
Substitutes:
GK 1 United States Matt Freese
DF 2 United States Matthew Real
DF 26 United States Nathan Harriel
MF 11 United States Alejandro Bedoya
MF 20 Venezuela Jesús Bueno
MF 30 United States Paxten Aaronson Substituted in 84'
MF 33 United States Quinn Sullivan
FW 19 Jamaica Cory Burke Substituted in 71' Substituted off 120+1'
FW 25 United States Chris Donovan Substituted in 120+1'
Manager:
United States Jim Curtin

MLS Cup MVP: John McCarthy (Los Angeles FC)[79]

Assistant referees:[80]
Corey Rockwell
Ian Anderson
Fourth official:
Fotis Bazakos
Reserve assistant referee:
Joe Dickerson
Video assistant referee:
Drew Fischer
Assistant video assistant referee:
Jeff Muschik
Reserve video assistant referee:
Jeffrey Greeson

Match rules[4]

  • 90 minutes
  • 30 minutes of extra time if necessary
  • Penalty shoot-out if scores still level
  • Maximum of nine named substitutes
  • Maximum of five substitutions, with a sixth allowed in extra time. Each team is only given three opportunities to make substitutions, with a fourth opportunity in extra time, excluding substitutions made at half-time, before the start of extra time, and at half-time in extra time. Two additional substitutions are available for concussed players.

Post-match

Both finalists were already qualified for the 2023 CONCACAF Champions League prior to their run in the playoffs.[81] As a result, the leftover slot was awarded to Austin FC, the next best eligible team in the 2022 regular season standings.[82] The winner of the MLS Cup will also qualify directly for the knockout stage of the 2023 Leagues Cup.[83]

Los Angeles FC became the first team to win the domestic double (Supporters Shield and MLS Cup) in the same season since Toronto FC did so in 2017.

References

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