The 2026 MLS regular season came to an end Saturday, when all 30 teams were in action for Decision Day. Eighteen clubs continue on in the MLS Cup playoffs, but for the other 12, the long offseason begins now.
Preseasons for these sides won’t begin until well into the new year, leaving ample time to reflect on the campaign gone by and correct course before the 2027 sprint season kicks off on Feb. 19.
So, for every team whose season has come to a close, what went right in 2026? What went wrong? What must it improve in 2027? Ryan Rosenblatt answers those questions for every eliminated team.
Supporters’ Shield standing: 19th
Cup performance: Round of 16 (U.S. Open Cup), league phase (Leagues Cup)
Playoff performance: Did not qualify
What went right in 2026: It was a miracle that United had a chance to make the playoffs on Decision Day. Despite falling short, their seven-match unbeaten streak to end the season was no fluke as Kelvin Yeboah had four goals and two assists to wrap up an 18-goal season.
What went wrong in 2026: There was a stretch in the middle of the season when the Loons won just one of 18 games and not for any specific reason. They were simply an outright mess for a stretch that made up more than half the campaign.
Top offseason priority ahead of 2027: Usually, teams focus on whom they want to bring in, but the Loons will have to focus on whom they want to keep because they have so many expiring contracts coming up. But they don’t have a sporting director after Khaled El-Ahmad left for Austin. Yeboah and JoaquÃn Pereyra are two good players to keep building around, but how the Loons do so starts with who is in charge; everything else will be on hold until they get that sorted.
Supporters’ Shield standing: 20th
Cup performance: Quarterfinals (Concacaf Champions Cup)
Playoff performance: Did not qualify
What went right in 2026: The Galaxy attack finished strong, scoring 19 goals in the last seven matches to nearly sneak into the playoffs.
What went wrong in 2026: The season got off to a bad start before it began when Riqui Puig reinjured his knee and was ruled out for the year. It felt as if the Galaxy were scrambling from that moment.
Top offseason priority ahead of 2027: Pick a direction and lay a foundation. There are good players here, but no real direction and it’s hard to believe this is the same club that won MLS Cup just two years ago. The Galaxy have been cycling through players and trying to patch things together on the fly for two years, and that can’t continue. Whether or not they can rely on Puig going forward, this club needs an ethos for the first time since it won the title and first faced a future without its star.
Supporters’ Shield standing: 21st
Cup performance: Semifinals (U.S. Open Cup)
Playoff performance: Did not qualify
What went right in 2026: The Rapids were very good at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, where they went 10-4-3. They also finally spent some money to sign Morgan Whittaker, who delivered five goals after joining them in September.
What went wrong in 2026: There were times when the Rapids looked as good as any team in the league, but even more when they looked as bad as any other. The latter occurred at the end of the season, when the Rapids won just one of their last nine, but it came against the West’s best, Vancouver. Consistency was elusive from the start of the season to the finish.
Top offseason priority ahead of 2027: It’s hard to imagine ownership greenlighting anything more than modest spending going forward, but there should be some money left over from the transfer of Lucas Herrington in the summer. If the Rapids can use it to get a quality center back in to pair with Rob Holding, whom they will have to re-sign, then they might have a chance to win their first playoff game in a decade next year.
Supporters’ Shield standing: 22nd
Cup performance: Round of 16 (U.S. Open Cup)
Playoff performance: Did not qualify
What went right in 2026: Julian Hall and Adri Mehmeti both had seasons so good that they forced themselves into the U.S. men’s national team, fellow teenager Matthew Dos Santos became a key piece as well, and 21-year-old Ronald Donkor feels like an old head compared to the rest, but he was terrific. The Red Bulls’ development system remains as good as any in the country.
What went wrong in 2026: The RBNY attack was simply far too toothless. If they couldn’t press their way into good positions and get opportunities in transition, there was no threat at goal.
Top offseason priority ahead of 2027: This team is desperate for more creativity in the attacking half. The problem is those types of players are usually the hardest to develop and most expensive to sign, and Red Bull GmbH has shown little interest in opening up the purse strings, but they need to spend on a player or two who can threaten defenses with the ball.
Supporters’ Shield standing: 23rd
Cup performance: Quarterfinals (U.S. Open Cup), league phase (Leagues Cup)
Playoff performance: Did not qualify
What went right in 2026: Nicolás Fernández‘s first full season in New York was a smash hit. The Argentine scored 16 goals and added 11 assists, sometimes single-handedly carrying the Pigeons’ attack.
What went wrong in 2026: Everything from July 31 on. NYCFC were hardly world beaters in the first half of the season, but they were a solid team that was on its way to the postseason. Then they won just two more games and were mathematically eliminated from the playoffs before they even got to Decision Day.
Top offseason priority ahead of 2027: Depth will have to be a focus after injuries ravaged this team and left them desperate to bring in Matt Miazga down the stretch to rescue a flailing defense. The top of the NYCFC team sheet is solid, but it falls apart pretty quickly, and with their new stadium set to open next summer, they’re going to want to hit the ground running on the new grass. That means having more than a handful of players they can rely on.
Supporters’ Shield standing: 24th
Cup performance: Preliminary round (Canadian Championship)
Playoff performance: Did not qualify
What went right in 2026: When the Reds got Josh Sargent, Djordje Mihailovic and Niklas Dorsch on the pitch together, they looked like a good team. The club’s top signings of each of the previous three transfer windows make up a good spine for TFC to build around.
What went wrong in 2026: Injuries were a problem all season, and that really showed up away from BMO Field, where TFC went 3W-3D-11L.
Top offseason priority ahead of 2027: Sargent showed his quality in his first season north of the border with 10 goals and four assists, but the Reds didn’t pay $22 million for that type of production. The defense needs a lot of work, but if TFC want their big-money striker to truly be the star they think he can be, they need to provide a second creative force behind him to pair with Mihailovic.
Supporters’ Shield standing: 25th
Cup performance: League phase (Leagues Cup)
Playoff performance: Did not qualify
What went right in 2026: Anders Dreyer put in another great campaign with 14 goals and 14 assists to lead the attack and midseason signing Elias Achouri had some bright moments. The front line was plenty good enough to take San Diego back to the postseason this year.
What went wrong in 2026: It’s hard enough to win games in this league with 11 men, but SDFC made a habit of playing with 10. They were shown an astounding eight red cards, undercutting any momentum they may have begun to generate in the middle of summer.
Top offseason priority ahead of 2027: The defense was putrid and got worse as the season went on, allowing 29 goals in a nine-game winless streak that began at the start of September. The departure of Luca Bombino hurt, but they got $5 million from Stoke City for his transfer, and they need to invest that money in shoring up the back line.
Supporters’ Shield standing: 26th
Cup performance: Round of 32 (U.S. Open Cup), quarterfinals (Leagues Cup)
Playoff performance: Did not qualify
What went right in 2026: Ervin Torres‘ debut season went as well as could be expected. The 18-year-old homegrown midfielder was so impressive in the early part of the campaign that he forced his way into the starting XI by late summer, and his passing range could make Austin tick for years to come.
What went wrong in 2026: The team didn’t win any of their first nine matches so things started terribly and never got much better. They were bad up front and at the back, and they ended up in a standoff with their own supporters after a fan was ejected for wearing an “abolish ICE” shirt at a game, leading to a boycott. Basically everything went wrong.
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Colorado Rapids vs. Chicago Fire FC – Game Highlights
Top offseason priority ahead of 2027: Give the new regime the backing it needs to orchestrate a quick turnaround. With Khaled El-Ahmad now installed as chief soccer officer and Jim Curtin taking over in the dugout, that should give Austin reason for optimism. They’ll likely get things sorted eventually, but why wait for eventually? Spend some money and get things going in the right direction as soon as possible, and the good news is they don’t have to be picky about where to start. The whole roster could use help.
Supporters’ Shield standing: 27th
Cup performance: Quarterfinals (U.S. Open Cup)
Playoff performance: Did not qualify
What went right in 2026: Atlanta sent fat checks to European clubs for Emmanuel Latte Lath and Alexey Miranchuk and got little in return, so it was a bit surprising when they went back to the continent for Breel Embolo, but the early returns were good. He scored four goals and added an assist in 11 matches to give the club a well-rounded striker to build around going forward.
What went wrong in 2026: The Five Stripes had their moments in slow, deliberate matches, but were a total mess when the pace of play picked up. That’s not going to work in this league.
Top offseason priority ahead of 2027: Atlanta has been a mess since 2019, and in a variety of ways, pivoting leadership and strategy on several occasions, but that might change now. They plucked president of soccer Mauricio Culebro from Tigres UANL in March and now he will decide whether to throw his full support behind chief soccer officer Chris Henderson and manager Tata Martino. Whatever Culebro decides, the Five Stripes need to have alignment and a clear vision starting immediately.
Supporters’ Shield standing: 28th
Cup performance: Round of 32 (U.S. Open Cup)
Playoff performance: Did not qualify
What went right in 2026: Erkut Sogut was a controversial hire when D.C. tabbed him to be sporting director despite him never working in a club’s front office before, but his first signing of last offseason hit as Tai Baribo scored 16 goals after coming over from Philadelphia.
What went wrong in 2026: Unfortunately, the rest of Sogut’s moves did not go nearly as well. Louis Munteanu didn’t live up to his $7 million price tag, and the hiring of René Weiler flopped as the manager really struggled in his first MLS campaign.
Top offseason priority ahead of 2027: The big news heading into the winter is United’s push to extract hundreds of millions from Washington, D.C. to put a roof over Audi Field and make other upgrades. When that is the biggest source of ambition at a club that has missed the playoffs for seven straight years, you know things are bleak. At this point, fans just want to see the club dream as big on the pitch as they do off of it.
Supporters’ Shield standing: 29th
Cup performance: Round of 32 (U.S. Open Cup)
Playoff performance: Did not qualify
What went right in 2026: Sporting were handed a giant reason for hope when Peter Mallouk bought the team prior to the season, and the early signs of his leadership were good. He immediately funneled money into the roster, and the $18 million signing of André Luiz was a smash hit.
What went wrong in 2026: SKC had months to prepare for the offseason under new president of soccer operations David Lee, but few of their winter moves paid off, including the hiring of manager Raphaël Wicky. There was some skepticism around his appointment after an underwhelming stint in Chicago and he did little to overcome those doubts. The squad was always going to need multiple seasons to turn around years of bad squad building, but the talent in the team was not nearly as bad as the results indicated, and that falls on Wicky.
Top offseason priority ahead of 2027: Expect SKC to continue their rebuild, which should touch every corner of the club, but they made real progress up front in the second half of the season after adding Luiz. The defense, on the other hand, was by far the worst in MLS, and while a new manager can help some of the structural issues, they need to be aggressive in the transfer market with an overhaul of the back line.
Supporters’ Shield standing: 30th
Cup performance: Runner-up (Canadian Championship)
Playoff performance: Did not qualify
What went right in 2026: Prince Owusu proved to be a smart signing when he put up 13 goals in Montréal last season after being plucked from rival Toronto, but he took it to another level in 2026 with 15 goals in his second year at the club.
What went wrong in 2026: Unfortunately, most everything else. They were the worst team in the Eastern Conference, which is difficult to do when you have a top-notch striker, and fired yet another manager. They’ve now had four different bosses since Wilfried Nancy jumped ship four years ago, and their issues stretched well beyond the pitch too. They alienated their supporters’ groups so badly that their biggest fans boycotted the end of the season.
Top offseason priority ahead of 2027: It’s hard to decide whether re-signing Owusu, hiring a manager or upgrading about half the roster is most important in Montréal this winter, but the reality is this is a club in distress yet again. Joey Saputo has never been regarded as one of the league’s best owners, to be kind, and the club needs investment, especially in facilities with the calendar change coming, as well as stability throughout the organization. It’s hard to get the individual things right when the foundation is so shaky. They need a fix at the very top.
