Major League Soccer 2022 season preview: NYCFC takes aim at title repeat; expansion Charlotte FC debuts

Major League Soccer kicks off its 27th season this weekend.

Among the full slate of 14 games are four that will air on national television. On Saturday, Los Angeles FC hosts the Colorado Rapids (3:30 p.m. ET on Univision/TUDN/Twitter), and then the Portland Timbers will host the 2021 Supporters’ Shield winners, the New England Revolution (7:30 p.m. ET on Fox). On Sunday, Atlanta United hosts Sporting Kansas City (3 p.m. ET on FS1), and then the defending MLS Cup champions New York City FC open their title defense against the LA Galaxy in Carson, California (5 p.m. ET on ESPN).

SPORTS NEWSLETTER:Sign up now for daily updates sent to your inbox

Here are 10 key storylines to follow during the 2022 MLS season:

1. Can New York City FC repeat as MLS Cup champs?

New York City FC won its first MLS Cup in 2021 and now faces the daunting task of accomplishing a title repeat. MLS hasn't had a repeat champion in a decade, when the Los Angeles Galaxy – featuring the triumvirate of David Beckham, Landon Donovan and Robbie Keane – won back-to-back MLS Cups in 2011-12.

Born in expansion in 2015 and backed by the resources of City Football Group (which also owns Premier League powerhouse Manchester City), NYCFC had been a playoff regular since 2016, won the Eastern Conference in 2019, but finally experienced its championship breakthrough in 2021 after winning three playoff games on the road.

NYCFC returns much of last season's team, including eight of 11 starters from the MLS Cup win. The most notable exclusion is U.S. men's national team player James Sands, who joined Rangers of the Scottish Premiership on an 18-month  loan with a purchase option. Valentín “Taty” Castellanos, the 2021 MLS Golden Boot winner, also was the topic of offseason transfer rumors but remains a part of the team. His availability related to a transfer could dramatically impact NYCFC’s MLS Cup repeat chances.

2. Who are the top MLS Cup 2022 contenders?

The New England Revolution are the reigning Supporters’ Shield winners. However, Matt Turner – the 2021 MLS goalkeeper of the year – will be heading to Arsenal of the Premier League this summer. An intriguing addition for Bruce Arena’s Revs is Jozy Altidore, who could work his way back into the USMNT picture with a strong and healthy start to the season.

NYCFC, Atlanta United and the Philadelphia Union figure to be among the challengers alongside New England in the Eastern Conference.

Out West, the Seattle Sounders own a league-record 13-season streak of playoff appearances, which dates back to the club’s inaugural season of 2009. That streak ranks second among major U.S. pro sports leagues behind the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins (15) and ahead of the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx (11), MLB’s Los Angeles Dodgers (9), NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers (8) and NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs (7).

Sporting Kansas City and the Portland Timbers figure to continue to be Western Conference contenders. Nashville SC, which reached the playoffs in each of its two seasons of existence but as an Eastern Conference team, moves to the Western Conference in 2022. The wild cards are Los Angeles’ two ambitious, but underachieving, clubs. While the Galaxy aim to put 2021’s playoff near-miss in the rearview, LAFC – which also missed the playoffs in 2021 – will be revamped under new coach Steve Cherundolo, the former USMNT player.

3. Who are the 2022 MLS Golden Boot contenders?

“Taty” Castellanos enters the season as the reigning Golden Boot winner. However, MLS has never had a player win back-to-back Golden Boot honors.

Two former Golden Boot winners – Carlos Vela of LAFC (2019) and Josef Martinez of Atlanta United (2018) – are still major goal-scoring threats. Vela’s LAFC teammate Cristian Arango hit the ground running after a midseason transfer to the club, scoring 14 goals in 17 games. Continuing that level of production in 2022 would do wonders for Arango’s Golden Boot chances, as well as LAFC’s playoff hopes. 

DC United’s Ola Kamara matched Castellanos’ goal total in 2021 but missed out on Golden Boot honors due to having fewer assists. The LA Galaxy’s Javier “Chicharito” Hernández and Seattle Sounders’ Raúl Ruidíaz each had injuries derail their Golden Boot hopes in 2021 and figure to be in the running this season. 

The Columbus Crew and USMNT forward Gyasi Zardes also is among the projected contenders, along with Hany Mukhtar of Nashville SC, Damir Kreilach of Real Salt Lake, Dániel Sallói of Sporting Kansas City, Gonzalo Higuaín of Inter Miami CF and Adam Buksa of the New England Revolution.

4. Famous faces take MLS plunge

A trio of big-name, world-class players is coming to MLS in 2022.

The biggest star among them is Lorenzo Insigne, who will join Toronto FC in a deal that begins on July 1. At 30 years old and still in the prime of his career, Insigne could play for nearly any European club and represents a major coup for TFC and new coach Bob Bradley. Insigne – who currently plays professionally for Napoli – was captain of the Italy team that won UEFA Euro 2020 last summer. In all, he’s earned 53 caps for Italy and scored 10 goals. In Toronto, Insigne will team up with 2020 MLS MVP Alejandro Pozuelo for a dynamic attack that will make TFC a must-watch for soccer fans.

Swiss international Xherdan Shaqiri joins a Chicago Fire FC team that is looking to end a long playoff drought. Shaqiri has excelled at the highest levels of world football and will be expected to be an instant star in MLS. He’s represented Switzerland at three World Cups, making a total of 100 appearances and scoring 26 goals for his national team. Shaqiri was a member of two UEFA Champions League winners (Bayern Munich in 2013, Liverpool in 2019) and part of the 2019-20 Liverpool team that won its first Premier League title in 30 years. With a fourth World Cup appearance likely this year, that could mean a motivated Shaqiri and big things for a team aiming to make the MLS playoffs for the first time since 2017.

Douglas Costa, who represented Brazil at the 2018 World Cup and has made 31 total appearances for his national team, is the latest splash signing by the Los Angeles Galaxy. Costa was a vital member of title-winning Bayern Munich and Juventus teams and now will be counted on to help return one of the league’s flagship franchises back to prominence.

5. Major intra-league moves 

Four players with hopes of being with the USMNT at the 2022 World Cup if the USMNT is fortunate enough to qualify were among key veteran players on the move this offseason. 

After seven seasons with Toronto FC, Altidore – who has 115 caps and scored 42 goals for the USMNT – was signed by the Revolution, who also acquired midfielder Sebastian Lletget (33 caps and eight goals for the USMNT) from the LA Galaxy.

FC Dallas acquired winger Paul Arriola (43 caps and eight goals for the USMNT) in a blockbuster trade.  

Midfielder Kellyn Acosta (48 USMNT caps) was acquired by Los Angeles FC from the Colorado Rapids. Acosta was among a handful of MLS veterans to join LAFC this offseason, including goalkeeper Maxime Crépeau (from the Vancouver Whitecaps), defenders Franco Escobar (from Atlanta United) and Ryan Hollingshead (from FC Dallas) and midfielder Ismael Tajouri-Shradi (from NYCFC through Charlotte FC).

6. Budding Liga MX-MLS bromance

Competition between the top two professional leagues in North America continues to grow.

This will be the final year before the Leagues Cup competition becomes a monthlong tournament featuring every team in MLS and Liga MX. For now, it’s an eight-team, single-elimination tournament, which Liga MX’s Club León won last year after defeating the Seattle Sounders in the final at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

New York City FC will host this year’s edition of the Campeones Cup, which is the showdown of the reigning MLS Cup champion and Liga MX’s Campeón de Campeones winner, on a yet-to-be-determined date. 

The two leagues played a joint All-Star game in 2021, but it hasn’t been announced yet if that will be the matchup for the 2022 edition of the MLS All-Star Game at Allianz Field in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Aug. 10.

7. Young USMNT prospects to watch

The last year saw a few young, up-and-coming USMNT players who were developed in MLS move on to European clubs to further their games. The most notable was Ricardo Pepi, who made the move from FC Dallas to FC Augsburg of the German Bundesliga over the winter. Three other players made the move to Bundesliga clubs: George Bello (from Atlanta United to Arminia Bielefeld), Kevin Paredes (from DC United to VfL Wolfsburg) and Justin Che (from FC Dallas to TSG 1899 Hoffenheim). Last summer, Gianluca Busio made a move from Sporting Kansas City to Venezia of Serie A in Italy.

There are a number of USMNT-eligible players who are 20 years old or younger who could not only make their way into the USMNT picture but also be sought after by clubs in Europe’s top leagues.

Gabriel Slonina (17) of the Chicago Fire is as promising a U.S. goalkeeping prospect that has come along in quite some time, and USMNT coach Gregg Berhalter already has called Slonina into a World Cup qualifying camp.

Philadelphia Union midfielder Paxten Aaronson (18) is the younger brother of the USMNT’s Brenden Aaronson, who also started his pro career with the Union before moving on to Red Bull Salzburg. Paxten appears to be on a similar career path.

New York Red Bulls midfielder Caden Clark (18), who has a knack for scoring highlight-reel goals, was sold to RB Leipzig of the Bundesliga but loaned back to RBNY.

New York City FC defender Tayvon Gray (19) was the second-youngest starter in MLS Cup history. The Columbus Crew’s Aidan Morris (now 20) – who missed the entire 2021 season with a torn ACL – was the youngest.

San Jose Earthquakes midfielder Cade Cowell (18) had five goals and five assists while starting 14 games and earning an All-Star nod in 2021.

Last season, Seattle Sounders midfielder Josh Atencio (20) made 18 starts for a team that is consistently among the league’s best.

Real Salt Lake forward Axel Kei (14), who was born in the Ivory Coast and raised in Brazil and then San Diego, is the youngest signing in MLS history, breaking a record held by Freddy Adu for 18 years.

8. Young non-USMNT prospects to watch

MLS has increased its investment in young players, including those from outside the U.S. 

Midfielder Thiago Almada (20, of Argentina) joined Atlanta United on a $16 million price tag that was the largest transfer fee in MLS history.

Chicago Fire forward Jhon Duran (18, Colombia) was the youngest international signing in MLS history when he (then 17) was acquired by Chicago last January and will make his Fire debut this season.

LA Galaxy defender Julián Araujo (20) and midfielder Efraín Álvarez (19) each made their debuts for the Mexico national team in 2021.

FC Dallas put that Ricardo Pepi transfer money to use, acquiring midfielder Alan Velasco (19, Argentina) on what was a club-record transfer fee.

9. Road to 2022 World Cup in Qatar

For just the second time in the last 11 seasons, MLS Cup will be played in November, and not December. The league’s championship final will be played on Nov. 5, which is just over two weeks before the 2022 World Cup kicks off at  Al Bayt Stadium in Al Khor, Qatar, on Nov. 21.

Even without the USMNT at the 2018 World Cup, MLS had 19 players representing six countries at that year’s tournament. With Canada on the brink of qualifying for the first time since 1986 and the USMNT in good position to reach Qatar, expect the number of MLS players at this year’s World Cup to dramatically exceed the 2018 total. The final round of World Cup qualifiers will be held March 24-30.

10. Charlotte FC embarks on debut season

For the sixth consecutive season, MLS will welcome a new club, as Charlotte FC gives the league 28 teams. In 2023, St. Louis City SC will push that total to 29, and – maybe (hopefully) – Las Vegas will secure team No. 30 in the near future.

So, what can be expected from Charlotte FC in 2022? Will this team hit the ground running and contend like Atlanta United (2017) and Los Angeles FC (2018) did in their inaugural seasons? Or will it struggle like FC Cincinnati (2019) and Austin FC (2021)? 

If you ask Charlotte’s first-ever coach, Miguel Ángel Ramírez, there doesn’t seem to be a whole heck of a lot of optimism for the team to be a force to be reckoned with from the jump.

“We need to reinforce the squad. We need to have something else to be more competitive,” Ramirez said, as translated from Spanish to English. “Right now, we’re screwed.”

Among the key acquisitions for Charlotte FC are forward Karol Swiderski, who’s scored six goals in 14 appearances for Poland’s national team; play-making midfielder Cristian “Titi” Ortiz; and defender Christian Fuchs, who was a key member of the Leicester City team that overcame long odds to win the 2015-16 Premier League title.

After playing its inaugural match at DC United on Feb. 26 (6 p.m. ET on ESPN+), Charlotte FC will host the LA Galaxy for its first home game at Bank of America Stadium on March 5 (7:30 p.m. ET on Fox) in hopes of setting a league attendance record. Atlanta United holds the regular-season single-game record at 72,548, set on Aug. 3, 2019. Bank of America Stadium – which is also the home of the NFL’s Carolina Panthers – has a seating capacity of 74,867.