The 2024 Leagues Cup was the fourth edition of the Leagues Cup, an international club soccer tournament contested by Major League Soccer (MLS) and Liga MX clubs in North America. It was held from July 26 to August 25, 2024, with all 77 matches played in Canada and the United States.
The groups and format for the 2024 edition were announced on January 31.[5] Unlike the 2023 edition, only two regions were used for the tournament's group stage, divided into eight groups in the West and seven in the East. The 45 teams in the group stage were seeded in a combined table based on the 2023 regular season for MLS teams and most recent 34 matches in the Clausura and Apertura for Liga MX teams.[6] Seeding for the group stage was divided into three pots (named "tiers") with geographical balance also considered.[5]MLS Cup 2023 champions Columbus Crew and the top Liga MX team by aggregate points in 2023, América, both earned a bye to the round of 32.[5][7]
All matches were played in Canada and United States at MLS venues. The top four teams in the Liga MX table used for seeding (América, Monterrey, Guadalajara, and UANL) had hub privileges that allowed them to be the designated home team in certain rounds. The predetermined venues for the hubs were announced on March 14, 2024.[5][7][8]
Inter Miami were defending champions, but failed to defend the title after being eliminated by Columbus Crew in the round of 16; Columbus Crew went on to win the tournament for the first time.
Teams
Draw
For the 2024 edition of the Leagues Cup, the 45 teams participating in the group stage were drawn into groups based on a combined ranking that used the 2023 Supporters' Shield table for MLS teams and the most recent 34 matches in the 2023 Clausura and Apertura seasons for Liga MX teams. These teams were divided into three pots from which the groups were drawn.[5][7]
Some pointed out that the Leagues Cup interrupted the schedules of both Liga MX and MLS. French player André-Pierre Gignac stated:[10] "I don't think that in Europe Marseille would have agreed to stop the local tournament for a month to go to another country to compete in an international one, but it is part of the growth of two leagues, of a rivalry. The United States is a spectacle and is great."
He also added: "It would be good if American clubs could come to play in Mexico because in Mexico there are different altitudes and climates, which would be beneficial."
In a similar way, Toluca's Portuguese trainer Renato Paiva declared: “For me it doesn't make sense to cut the tournament. Who am I to teach people to organize tournaments, but I think these types of strikes should be for national teams. Today you start the Leagues Cup, you finish it and start the championship later or you start the championship, you finish it and you start the Leagues Cup later."[11]
Additionally, a reporter from the newspaper Récord reported that the Leagues Cup would impose a $25,000 fine on anyone who spoke negatively about the tournament, which was slightly more than 450,000 Mexican pesos. This decision was reportedly due to the negative feedback received by the event's organizers in 2023, when León players spent an extended period at the airport due to logistical problems.[12]
Following Tijuana's defeat to Los Angeles FC on July 26, and regarding a controversial expulsion during the match, goalkeeper Antonio Rodríguez limited his comments to the press area, as he admitted that he could face punishment: “I don't have the slightest idea, I was far away and I only saw that they gave him the red card (…) We can't speak badly about the Leagues Cup because they'll fine us”, the goalkeeper told Salvadoran journalist Rodrigo Serrano.[13]
