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Inter Miami CF forward Lionel Messi. Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

MLS playoffs: How the East stacks up after Game 1

By Alyssa Clang | Last updated Oct 31, 2025 12:10 PM ET

The Major League Soccer postseason has begun.

Sixteen teams — eight each from the Eastern and Western conference — remain in contention for the 2025 MLS Cup.

The first round of the playoffs is a best-of-three series pitting the seeded members of each conference against one another. The first team to two victories in each matchup will move on to the Conference Semifinals.

Game 1 of this series is complete; Game 2 is set to kick off on Saturday. But how did we get here, and which teams can clinch their series? Let's take a look at how the first matchday played out in the East:

Philadelphia (1) vs. Chicago (8) — 2-2 (4-2 pks)

Philadelphia entered this tournament as the top seed for a reason: It’s been MLS’ most impressive defensive outfit in 2025 by far. And for approximately 80 minutes, a remarkable defense is exactly what Philadelphia gave us. It shut down an unusually expressive Chicago side without too much trouble and cruised to a comfortable 2-0 lead.

From there, though, everything backfired. Chicago nicked a goal in the 84th minute through Jonathan Bamba; sensing blood in the water, it threw everything at Philadelphia’s goal in the closing minutes. Jack Elliott — former Philadelphia star, current owner of an impressive shiner and the least likely open-play goalscorer on the field by a mile — leveled things from Chicago in the 93rd minute, and off to penalties we went.

Philadelphia fought back to win the shootout and claim the first victory of the series. It wasn’t as easy as it should’ve been, though, and Philadelphia’s young, thin roster looked more exposed than it had all season. Chicago will come out in Game 2 hungry for revenge and capable of serving it up cold.

Cincinnati (2) vs. Columbus (7) — 1-0

This postseason edition of the Hell is Real derby was messier and closer than it had any right to be. Cincinnati took it, and rightfully so, off a late Kevin Denkey goal, but struggled to develop and establish a rhythm between its attacking trio of Denkey, Evander and Brenner. The three players looked astonishingly good on their own but fell apart every time they needed to combine in the attacking third.

Columbus fought hard but was unable to find the back of the net without the help of injured striker Wessam Abou Ali. If it’s going to level this series in Game 2, it needs standout performances from the attackers that have largely let it down this season: Daniel Gazdag and Jacen Russell-Rowe.

Inter Miami (3) vs. Nashville (6) — 3-1

Nothing to see here. Pack it up, folks. Miami is through.

(No, seriously. Miami’s record against Nashville in 2025 reads as follows: played three, won three, scored 10, conceded four. Lionel Messi has scored seven goals against Nashville this season by himself. Miami has many weaknesses as a team, but this exhausted Nashville squad looks capable of exploiting precisely none of them.)

Charlotte (4) vs. NYCFC (5) — 0-1

We all owe NYCFC a hearty thanks: Its 1-0 win over Charlotte made it the only team to win a match away from home in Game 1. And what a win it was. This NYCFC team doesn’t get a lot of love — it’s pragmatic, steady and not exactly star-studded, after all — but it’s quietly put together a great run of postseason form.

Charlotte, meanwhile? Spanish winger Liel Abada failed to fill the suspended Wilfried Zaha’s shoes, English midfielder Ashley Westwood couldn’t get his set pieces on target and American defender Tim Ream found himself outrun and outplayed by NYCFC’s wily offense. Take a look at his positioning during Costa Rican striker Martinez’s stunning solo goal:

Oof. Not exactly an inspiring showing from one of the U.S. Men’s National Team’s presumed World Cup starters.

The MLS Playoffs will return for Matchday 2 on Saturday.

Alyssa Clang

Alyssa is a Boston-born Californian with a passion for global sport. She can yell about misplaced soccer passes in five languages and rattle off the turns of Silverstone in her sleep. You can find her dormant Twitter account at @alyssaclang, but honestly, you’re probably better off finding her here

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