The first portion of the 2026 MLS season is in the books. It’s all eyes on the World Cup now, as the 2026 edition of the tournament descends upon North America and 13 cities across the United States and Canada, as well as an additional three in Mexico.
This weekend’s Matchday 15 slate of MLS saw some teams allow World Cup-bound players to sit out, while others fielded top-choice lineups with hopes of heading into the extended international break with a win and good vibes around the club.
From outstanding showdowns on the West Coast to Lionel Messi’s concerning exit in a record-smashing 6–4 Inter Miami victory over the Philadelphia Union, the final pre-World Cup weekend of MLS didn’t disappoint.
Here, Sports Illustrated dives into the weekly MLS Power Rankings, with the league set to resume with a six-game Matchday 16 slate on July 16, between the World Cup semifinals and the July 19 final.
MLS Power Rankings Matchday 15: Clubs 30–11
30. Philadelphia Union (Previous: 30)
29. Atlanta United (Previous: 29)
28. Sporting Kansas City (Previous: 27)
27. Colorado Rapids (Previous: 26)
26. St. Louis CITY SC (Previous: 28)
25. Austin FC (Previous: 24)
24. Orlando City (Previous: 21)
23. CF Montréal (Previous: 25)
22. D.C. United (Previous: 23)
21. Toronto FC (Previous: 22)
20. Portland Timbers (Previous: 20)
19. San Diego FC (Previous: 17)
18. Columbus Crew (Previous: 19)
17. Red Bull New York (Previous: 18)
16. Houston Dynamo (Previous: 16)
15. LA Galaxy (Previous: 15)
14. Minnesota United (Previous: 14)
13. New York City FC (Previous: 11)
12. Charlotte FC (Previous: 13)
11. New England Revolution (Previous: 10)
10. FC Dallas (Previous: 12)
While some teams are limping into the World Cup break, things couldn’t be going any better for FC Dallas. This weekend saw the Toros grab a 2–1 win over the Colorado Rapids, bringing them to four wins in their last five and up to fourth in the Western Conference.
Even without talisman and World Cup-bound Croatian international Petar Musa, they found a way to nab a pair of goals through Logan Farrington’s sixth of the season and Santiago Moreno, both of whom made no mistakes from the penalty spot. Outside of the top-tier attack, Jonathan Sirois has found some form between the sticks, giving manager Eric Quill a true battle between the Canadian and Michael Collodi.
9. FC Cincinnati (Previous: 11)
Talk about heading into the World Cup with a bang. FC Cincinnati took full advantage of a dismal Orlando City defense, putting up six goals in a 6–2 win, now having scored at least three goals in four of their last five matches.
After starting the season at a lower level of production than his usual self, Evander has found his form in the past several weeks. In the Orlando beatdown, he posted an outstanding two goals and three assists, while also stringing together 10 key passes. That has him at nine goals and six assists this season, trailing only Messi in total goal contributions.
Cincinnati returns to MLS action in July against Western Conference leaders, Vancouver Whitecaps, in what looks to be a thrilling matchup.
8. Real Salt Lake (Previous: 7)
Zavier Gozo sets up Zach Booth for his first Salt Lake goal! 👊
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) May 23, 2026
📺 Apple TV: https://t.co/0hr43uDfub pic.twitter.com/MpGjNvOXGR
The biggest news for Real Salt Lake came pre-match on Saturday, when reports revealed that star midfielder Diego Luna and outstanding teenager Zavier Gozo would not make the U.S. men’s national team squad for the upcoming World Cup.
Gozo played as if he took that to heart, ramping up his energy down the right flank even more so and setting up Zach Booth for the 22-year-old right wingback’s first MLS goal in the 22nd minute.
While Luna wasn’t in the matchday squad, the Claret and Cobalt allowed a 93rd-minute equalizer; they shouldn’t worry too much. It’s three wins and four games undefeated in their last five, with two players bound to show some vigor for the rest of the season.
7. Chicago Fire (Previous: 8)
It wasn’t the start to Saturday’s match that the Chicago Fire would’ve wanted, allowing Toronto FC’s Josh Sargent to rip through the backline before firing a blistering shot past goalkeeper Chris Brady. Yet, Gregg Berhalter’s men can take solace in their bounce-back and came out victorious, while also celebrating Brady’s reported nomination to the USMNT’s World Cup squad.
It marked the end of Hugo Cuypers’s immense 10-game win streak, but seeing Robin Lod and Andrew Gutman step up with goals should give the Fire some confidence as well, knowing they are far from a one-man show.
6. Seattle Sounders (Previous: 5)
The Seattle Sounders had a massive opportunity to prove themselves as a Supporters’ Shield and Western Conference contender over the past two weeks. Instead, they failed to score a goal and lost 2–0 to the LA Galaxy and 1–0 to LAFC.
Is it time to worry? Maybe a little. As much as late-summer surges practically define Brian Schmetzer’s era at Seattle’s helm, they won’t be on the pitch again until July and let a vital six points slip. At the same time, the midfield duo of Cristian Roldan and Hasanni Dotson is showing cracks, while 19-year-old Snyder Brunell can’t yet be relied upon every week.
5. LAFC (Previous: 6)
It wasn’t glorious, but LAFC are back in the win column for the first time in four games, as they snapped a three-game losing skid with a 1–0 victory over Seattle Sounders on Sunday night. Tim Tillman hit the back of the net in the 86th minute, finishing off a chance from Tyler Boyd.
The win puts the Black and Gold fifth in the Western Conference but offers little respite from a rather underwhelming first few months under manager Marc Dos Santos, a longtime assistant to Steve Cherundolo.
Now, the future is in question. How secure is Marc Dos Santos’s role? How will the team forge ahead without Stephen Eustáquio in midfield, given his plans to return to FC Porto after the World Cup? And how about Son Heung-min, who took seven shots but hasn’t scored in 13 MLS matches this season? Lots to be answered in LA.
4. Inter Miami (Previous: 4)
6-4 thriller! One of the craziest MLS games of all time! 🤯
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) May 25, 2026
▪️ Highest scoring first half ever (4-4)
▪️ Second most goals in a game (10)
▪️ Hat tricks from Milan Iloski and Luis Suarez pic.twitter.com/iit666kFao
Absolute chaos. Many teams that welcome Inter Miami to town have described the experience as a “circus,” with the fanfare and spotlight that comes with Lionel Messi and the star-studded Herons. That circus, albeit in a different way, has already firmly established itself at Nu Stadium.
First, it was three straight winless showings at the new ground. Last week, it was a silent protest from the supporters, and this week, it was a 6–4 win over the Philadelphia Union, which was 4–4 at halftime, marking the first time eight goals had been scored in an opening frame in MLS history.
Miami, at their best, can score—and they’re very good at it, thanks to Messi. Yet, they are extremely volatile defensively. There have been improvements with the center back pairing of Gonzalo Luján and Micael, in place of Maxi Falcón, but the amount of shots and chances given up isn’t that of a championship-style team. In no world should Dayne St. Clair allow four goals and still have a “goals prevented” of +0.98, indicating a net positive performance despite the four goals allowed.
Sunday’s showing was one of Luis Suárez’s best in MLS, scoring a hat-trick and a wonderfully taken chested volley, while Germán Berterame may have played himself onto Mexico’s World Cup squad with a brace. Yet, as much as Miami are faulty, they can win, and that has them second in the Eastern Conference and fourth in MLS.
3. San Jose Earthquakes (Previous: 3)
That's ✌️ for Preston Judd in less than 15 minutes 😱 pic.twitter.com/ZKZsSHxjQa
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) May 24, 2026
The San Jose Earthquakes continued their heavy schedule this week and started with continued disappointment, falling to the Colorado Rapids in the U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals, their third straight loss across all competitions. This weekend though, saw them return to form, securing a 3–1 road win against the Portland Timbers to stay tied on points atop the Western Conference with Vancouver.
With a brace, Preston Judd brought himself to 11 goals on the season, and the 26-year-old, who previously boasted an MLS career high of seven goals in the 2025 season, finds himself firmly in the MLS Golden Boot race, one goal behind Messi and Musa for second and two goals behind Chicago’s Cuypers for the lead.
Under the tutelage of Bruce Arena, the Earthquakes have been the defining story of the first half of the 2026 season. With likely no players heading to the World Cup, they’ll have some time to get healthy and practice before the summer and fall stretch towards the MLS Cup playoffs.
2. Nashville SC (Previous: 1)
Three wins in a row, nine games undefeated and just a single loss in their 14 regular-season games so far—it’s been an incredible year for Nashville SC, buoyed even further by the fact they’ve weathered significant injury absences without Sam Surridge, Edvard Tagseth and Patrick Yazbek in recent weeks.
This week saw Nashville pick up all three points against New York City FC, with Cristian Espinoza picking up his eighth assist of the season and getting goals from center backs Maxwell Woledzi and Jeisson Palacios from corners, even though they struggled to break down NYCFC’s defensive setup. Surridge also returned to MLS action and should be fully fit come the summer.
1. Vancouver Whietcaps (Previous: 2)
Blackmon ➡️ Müller ➡️ White to give @WhitecapsFC the lead!
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) May 24, 2026
📺 Apple TV: https://t.co/ueTxxvTrbR pic.twitter.com/oZkqqyK7TQ
Vancouver Whitecaps had a relatively easy start to the season, considering the heavy home schedule before handing over BC Place to FIFA for seven World Cup matches, including two knockout games this summer. It means that Vancouver has spent the last five matches on the road and has managed to pick up eight of a possible 15 points, an extremely tough feat in MLS.
This weekend’s 4–2 win over San Diego FC also marked one of their best performances of the season in an attacking sense. Thomas Müller was excellent in linking plays through midfield, Brian White’s deft finishing touch returned to its best form and Bruno Caicedo continued to impress, with the 21-year-old scoring his second goal, bringing him to four goal contributions in just 301 minutes.
Already enjoying a standout attacking showing, the Whitecaps managed to put in a strong enough defensive effort, despite backup goalkeeper Isaac Boehmer filling in for the suspended first-choice Yohei Takaoka and without Andrés Cubas, widely considered one of the best defensive midfielders in the league.
For a team dealing with a heavy road schedule and with rumors of relocation, finding this level of success on the pitch has been exceptional, and they will now get to see likely Cubas and Sebastian Berhalter at the World Cup with Paraguay and the USMNT, respectively.
