2025 MLS Cup Playoffs Conference Finals: Dates, Format, Teams

The new kings of MLS are close to being crowned.

Lionel Messi (right) is eyeing up his first MLS Cup. / Melinda Meijer/ISI Photos/Johnnie Izquierdo/Getty Images

Four teams remain in the 2025 MLS Cup playoffs, but only two will come out on top of their respective conference finals this weekend.

What has been a thrilling postseason is slowly winding down, with only the best sides left in pursuit of the Philip F. Anschutz Trophy. Even Supporters’ Shield winners Philadelphia Union and Son Heung-min’s LAFC could not make it past the conference semifinals.

The battle for the Western Conference and the Eastern Conference comes down to just one more match on either side, with the winners advancing to the MLS Cup final on Saturday, Dec. 6.

Here’s everything you need to know about the upcoming MLS Cup playoffs conference finals.

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2025 MLS Cup Playoffs Conference Finals: Dates

Lionel Messi (right) will lead Inter Miami in the conference finals. / Jeff Dean/Getty Images

The MLS Cup playoffs conference finals will close out an action-packed November. There is no overlap between the two conference finals, so fans do not have to worry about missing a second of either match.

Game	Date	Kick-Off Time
Inter Miami vs. NYCFC	Saturday, Nov. 29	6 p.m. ET / 3 p.m. PT
San Diego vs. Vancouver Whitecaps	Saturday, Nov. 29	9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT

With both matches unfolding on the same day, the MLS Cup final matchup will be determined by the time the final whistle sounds at Snapdragon Stadium.

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2025 MLS Cup Playoffs Conference Finals: Format

Both MLS Cup conference final matches are single-elimination. / Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images

Much like the conference semifinals, the conference finals are knockout games. There will be no best-of-three series to save a team should they falter over the course of 90 minutes; the winning club at the end of regulation will advance to the MLS Cup final.

If the score is tied, though, the two teams will play two 15-minute extra time periods. If there is still no winner after the additional extra time, then a penalty shootout will decide which team stays alive in the postseason.

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2025 MLS Cup Playoffs Conference Semifinals: Teams

The Vancouver Whitecaps are one of the favorites to win the MLS Cup. / Jeff Vinnick/Getty Images

In what seems like the blink of an eye, a postseason that began with 18 teams now only consists of four.

Western Conference Teams

• San Diego FC
• Vancouver Whitecaps

As the No. 1 seed, San Diego will host the Vancouver Whitecaps at Snapdragon Stadium. Mikey Varas’s men have not lost at home in the 2025 MLS Cup playoffs.

Eastern Conference Teams

• Inter Miami
• NYCFC

As the No. 3 seed, Inter Miami will host NYCFC at Chase Stadium. With the opening of Miami Freedom Park next year, the 2025 MLS Cup playoffs could be the last postseason clashes to unfold at the Herons’ current home.

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