MLS Standings 2017: Playoff Picture, Seeds & Format

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Toronto FC has already won the 2017 MLS Supporters' Shield.

Fans are just weeks away from the start of the MLS playoffs. Toronto FC has already wrapped up the Supporters Shield with their league-leading 19 wins.

Six teams have punched their ticket to the postseason. Things in the East are much clearer with five of the six spots already claimed. Vancouver is the only team in the Western Conference to have clinched a playoff birth in a wide open race to the finish.

Sunday, October 22 will mark the final day of the MLS regular season. The playoffs will begin on October 25. The knockout games will take place on October 25 and 26.

The MLS details how the playoff format works for the 12 teams that make the postseason.

The league’s current playoff format sees 12 teams qualifying, six from each conference. The four lowest seeded playoff teams in each conference kick off the postseason in single-elimination Knockout Round matches. Those are followed by home-and-home, aggregate-goal Conference Semifinals and Conference Championship series in both the East and West, where the first tiebreaker is most away goals scored in the series. The final two teams left standing go head-to-head in a one-game MLS Cup final.

Here’s a look at the MLS standings courtesy of MLSSoccer.com. Teams with an “x” next to their name have already clinched a playoff birth.

MLS Eastern Conference Standings

MLS Western Conference Standings

MLS Playoff Picture 2017

Here’s a look at the current playoff matchups if the playoffs started today. The top two teams in each conference begin the postseason with a bye.

EAST
No. 1 Toronto FC and No. 2 New York City FC (Byes)
Knockout Round: No. 3 Atlanta vs. No. 6 New York Red Bulls
Knockout Round: No. 4 Chicago vs. No. 5 Columbus

WEST
No. 1 Vancouver and No. 2 Sporting KC (Byes)
Knockout Round: No. 3 Portland vs. No. 6 Real Salt Lake
Knockout Round: No. 4 Seattle vs. No. 5 Houston