With much of their top competition eliminated before the conference finals, the Seattle Sounders have strengthened their grip as the favorites to repeat as MLS champions.
Seattle was the +500 favorite to win the Cup by SportsBetting.com before the playoffs began, and those odds have shortened to +150 ahead of the Sounders’ Western Conference final game against Minnesota United (+350) on Monday. The Columbus Crew are being offered at +225 by SportsBetting.com, with the New England Revolution having the longest odds at +400. The Crew are the +130 favorites to beat the Revolution (+240) in Sunday’s Eastern Conference final.
Seattle eliminated LAFC and Dallas to reach the semifinals and their path to the title was made easier with top-seeded Sporting KC and third-seeded Portland eliminated. Minnesota is the fourth seed, having shut out Colorado and Sporting KC a combined 6-0 to advance to the semifinals.
In the Eastern Conference, No. 1 seed Philadelphia and No. 2 seed Toronto failed to make it out of the first round, leaving No. 3 Columbus as the highest-remaining seed. New England upset Philadelphia and Orlando City to reach the semis. –Field Level Media ()