CONCACAF Champions Cup 2026 bracket, schedule, results, format explained as Messi bounced from continental title originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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CONCACAF Champions Cup format for 2026
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Schedule for 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup
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Teams qualified to the 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup
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2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup bracket, fixtures and results
Each continent has its own football championship tournament, and North America is no different as the 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup gets set to determine this year's title-winning club.
This competition has been traditionally dominated by Liga MX clubs, but Lionel Messi and Inter Miami were downed by their own league while attempting to buck that trend. After winning the 2025 MLS Cup title, the first in club history, the Herons entered this year's Champions Cup with renewed hope and promise, but were shattered after being eliminated in the early rounds.
MLS teams have secured just one title in the last 24 years of the competition, with the Seattle Sounders triumphing in 2022.
The Sporting News brings you a complete look at how the CONCACAF Champions Cup works, when games will be played, and who will match up against one another in this year's competition.
MORE:How to watch CONCACAF Champions Cup matches in USA | How to watch in Canada
2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup format
The CONCACAF Champions Cup is formatted as a full bracket.
The five seeded teams (MLS Cup winner, Liga MX champions, Leagues Cup winner, Central American Cup winner, and Caribbean Cup winner) are given a bye through to the Round of 16, while the rest of the 27-team field starts in Round One.
From the start, the matchups are determined by a pre-tournament draw, with CONCACAF ranking used to determine the pots.
All rounds prior to the final are two-legged, meaning aggregate score is used to decide the qualifier to the next round. Away goals are used as the tiebreaker, with extra time and penalties required only if a winner still cannot be determined.
In fact, Messi and Inter Miami fell victim to that very rule, eliminated by Nashville SC on the away goals tiebreaker, having drawn 0-0 on the road before a 1-1 draw at home ushered them out.
The CONCACAF Champions Cup winner qualifies for both that year's FIFA Intercontinental Cup and the next FIFA Club World Cup.
2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup schedule
The matchups for the 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup were set by the draw on December 9, 2025.
Teams entering in the Round of 16 were ranked by CONCACAF and slotted into the bracket automatically before the draw. The rest of the 22 participants were ranked by CONCACAF coefficient and drawn into first-round matchups against one another.
All stages prior to the final will be contested across two legs, while the final will be a single match. It is not yet determined where the final will take place, either hosted by one of the participants or contested at a neutral venue.
Stage
First Leg
2nd Leg
First Round
Feb. 6-15
Feb. 20-29
Round of 16
Mar. 5-7
Mar. 12-14
Quarterfinals
Apr. 2-4
Apr. 9-11
Semifinals
Apr. 23-25
Apr. 30-May 2
Final
June 2
Teams qualified for 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup
Club (Seed)
Nation
Qualified Via
Round Entered
Inter Miami (2)
USA
2025 MLS Cup champions
Round of 16
Seattle Sounders (3)
USA
2025 Leagues Cup champions
Round of 16
Toluca (1)
Mexico
2024/25 Liga MX champions*
Round of 16
Alajuelense (4)
Costa Rica
2025 Central American Cup champions
Round of 16
Mount Pleasant (5)
Jamaica
2025 Caribbean Cup champions
Round of 16
LA Galaxy (14)
USA
2025 Leagues Cup third place
Round One
Philadelphia Union (12)
USA
2025 MLS Supporters' Shield
Round One
San Diego FC (17)
USA
2025 MLS Western Conference regular season champions
Round One
Vancouver Whitecaps (9)
USA
Next highest non-qualified club in MLS standings
Round One
FC Cincinnati (13)
USA
Next highest non-qualified club in MLS standings
Round One
LAFC (10)
USA
Next highest non-qualified club in MLS standings**
Round One
Nashville SC (15)
USA
2025 U.S. Open Cup winners
Round One
Club America (8)
Mexico
2024/25 Liga MX Apertura champions*
Round One
Monterrey (11)
Mexico
2023/24 Liga MX Clausura runners-up
Round One
Cruz Azul (6)
Mexico
Next highest non-qualified club in Liga MX standings
Round One
UNAL Tigres (7)
Mexico
Next highest non-qualified club in Liga MX standings
Round One
UNAM Pumas (16)
Mexico
Next highest non-qualified club in Liga MX standings
Round One
Vancouver FC (26)
Canada
2025 Canadian Championship runners-up***
Round One
Atletico Ottowa (20)
Canada
2025 Canadian Premier League champions
Round One
Forge FC (19)
Canada
2025 Canadian Premier League Shield winners
Round One
O&M (27)
Dominican Rep.
2025 Caribbean Cup runners-up
Round One
Defence Force (25)
Trinidad & Tobago
2025 Caribbean Cup third place
Round One
Xelaju (22)
Guatemala
2025 Central American Cup runners-up
Round One
Real Espana (24)
Honduras
2025 Central American Cup semifinalist
Round One
Olimpia (18)
Honduras
2025 Central American Cup semifinalist
Round One
Cartagines (21)
Costa Rica
2025 Central American Cup play-in winners
Round One
Sporting San Miguelito (23)
Panama
2025 Central American Cup play-in winners
Round One
* Toluca secured passage to the CONCACAF Champions Cup Round of 16 by having a higher aggregate table standing than 2024/25 Apertura champions Club America.
** LAFC secured CONCACAF Champions Cup participation as the next-highest MLS finisher yet to qualify due to 2025 League Cup runners-up Inter Miami having already qualified via their 2025 MLS Cup title.
*** Vancouver FC secured CONCACAF Champions Cup participation as Canadian Championship winners Vancouver Whitecaps had already qualified via MLS table standing, which takes precedent.
2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup fixtures, results
All times Eastern. Higher seeded team hosts the second leg in each matchup.
Round One
First leg
Date
Time (ET)
Match
Location
Feb. 3
7:06 p.m.
R11: Forge FC 0-0 UNAL Tigres
Hamilton, Ontario
Feb. 3
9:06 p.m.
R7: Olimpia 1-2 Club America
Tegucigalpa, Honduras
Feb. 3
11:06 p.m.
R1: San Diego FC 4-1 UNAM Pumas
San Diego, CA
Feb. 4
8:06 p.m.
R4: Xelaju 1-1 Monterrey
Guatemala City, Guatemala
Feb. 4
10:06 p.m.
R3: Vancouver FC 0-3 Cruz Azul
Langley, British Colombia
Feb. 17
8:06 p.m.
R6: Atletico Ottawa 0-2 Nashville SC
Hamilton, Ontario
Feb. 17
10:06 p.m.
R5: Real Espana 1-6 LAFC
San Pedro Sula, Honduras
Feb. 18
6:06 p.m.
R8: Defence Force 0-5 Philadelphia Union
Port of Spain, Trinidad
Feb. 18
8:06 p.m.
R10: O&M 0-4 FC Cincinnati
Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic
Feb. 18
10:06 p.m.
R9: Cartagines 0-0 Vancouver Whitecaps
Cartago, Costa Rica
Feb. 19
8:06 p.m.
R2: Sporting San Miguelito 1-1 LA Galaxy
Penonome, Panama
Second leg
Date
Time (ET)
Match
Location
Feb. 10
8:06 p.m.
R1: UNAM Pumas1-0 San Diego FC
Mexico City, Mexico
Feb. 10
10:06 p.m.
R11: UNAL Tigres 4-1Forge FC
Monterrey, Mexico
Feb. 11
8:06 p.m.
R7: Club America 0-0Olimpia
Mexico City, Mexico
Feb. 11
10:06 p.m.
R4: Monterrey 2-0Xelaju
Monterrey, Mexico
Feb. 12
8:06 p.m.
R9: Cruz Azul 5-0Vancouver FC
Mexico City, Mexico
Feb. 24
8:06 p.m.
R6: Nashville SC 5-0Atletico Ottawa
Nashville, TN
Feb. 24
10:06 p.m.
R5: LAFC 1-0Real Espana
Los Angeles, CA
Feb. 25
7:06 p.m.
R10: FC Cincinnati 9-0O&M
Cincinnati, OH
Feb. 25
9:36 p.m.
R3: Vancouver Whitecaps 2-0Cartagines
Vancouver, British Colombia
Feb. 25
11:36 p.m.
R2: LA Galaxy 0-0Sporting San Miguelito
Carson, CA
Feb. 26
7:06 p.m.
R8: Philadelphia Union 7-0Defence Force
Philadelphia, PA
Round of 16
First leg
Date
Time (ET)
Match
Location
Tue, Mar. 10
7 p.m.
M6: Philadelphia Union (R7) 0-1 Club America (R8)
Philadelphia, PA
Tue, Mar. 10
9 p.m.
M3: Monterrey (R4) 2-3 Cruz Azul (R3)
Monterrey, Mexico
Tue, Mar. 10
11 p.m.
M4: LAFC (R5) 1-1 Alajuelense
Los Angeles, CA
Wed, Mar. 11
7:30 p.m.
M5: Nashville SC (R6) 0-0 Inter Miami
Nashville, TN
Wed, Mar. 11
9:30 p.m.
M2: LA Galaxy (R2) 3-0 Mount Pleasant
Carson, CA
Wed, Mar. 11
11:30 p.m.
M1: San Diego FC (R1) 3-2 Toluca
San Diego, CA
Thu, Mar. 12
8 p.m.
M7: FC Cincinnati (R9) 3-0 UNAL Tigres (R10)
Cincinnati, OH
Thu, Mar. 12
10 p.m.
M8: Vancouver Whitecaps (R11) 0-3 Seattle Sounders
Vancouver, Canada
Second leg
Date
Time (ET)
Match
Location
Tue, Mar. 17
9 p.m.
M4: Alajuelense1-2 LAFC (R5)
Alajuela, Costa Rica
Tue, Mar. 17
11 p.m.
M3: Cruz Azul (R3) 1-1Monterrey (R4)
Puebla City, Mexico
Wed, Mar. 18
7 p.m.
M5: Inter Miami1-1 Nashville SC (R6)
Ft. Lauderdale, FL*
Wed, Mar. 18
9 p.m.
M6: Club America (R8) 1-1Philadelphia Union (R7)
Mexico City, Mexico
Wed, Mar. 18
11 p.m.
M1: Toluca 4-0San Diego FC (R1)
Toluca, Mexico
Wed, Mar. 18
11 p.m.
M8: Seattle Sounders 2-1Vancouver Whitecaps (R11)
Seattle, WA
Thu, Mar. 19
7 p.m.
M2: Mount Pleasant0-3 LA Galaxy (R2)
Saint Ann, Jamaica
Thu, Mar. 19
9 p.m.
M7: UNAL Tigres (R10) 5-1FC Cincinnati (R9)
San Nicolas, Mexico
* Inter Miami played their home Round of 16 home match at their Ft. Lauderdale stadium, with their new Freedom Park venue in Miami not set to open until April 4.
Quarterfinals
First leg
Date
Time (ET)
Match
Location
Tue, Apr. 7
8 p.m.
Q3: Nashville SC 0-0 Club America
Nashville, TN
Tue, Apr. 7
10 p.m.
Q2: LAFC 3-0 Cruz Azul
Los Angeles, CA
Wed, Apr. 8
9 p.m.
Q4: Tigres 2-0 Seattle Sounders
Monterrey, MEX
Wed, Apr. 8
11 p.m.
Q1: Toluca 4-2 LA Galaxy
Toluca, MEX
Second leg
Date
Time (ET)
Match
Location
Tue, Apr. 14
9 p.m.
Q2: Cruz Azul1-1 LAFC
Mexico City, MEX
Tue, Apr. 14
11:30 p.m.
Q3: Club America0-1 Nashville SC
Mexico City, MEX
Wed, Apr. 15
9 p.m.
Q1: LA Galaxy0-3 Toluca
Carson, CA
Wed, Apr. 15
11:30 p.m.
Q4: Seattle Sounders3-1 Tigres
Seattle, WA
Semifinals
First leg
Date
Time (ET)
Match
Location
Tue, Apr. 28
9:30 p.m.
S2: Nashville SC 0-1 Tigres
Nashville, TN
Wed, Apr. 29
10:30 p.m.
S1: LAFC 2-1 Toluca
Los Angeles, CA
Second leg
Date
Time (ET)
Match
Location
Tue, May 5
9:30 p.m.
S2: Tigres 1-0Nashville SC
Monterrey, MEX
Wed, May 6
9:30 p.m.
S1: Toluca 4-0LAFC
Mexico City, MEX
Final
The final is hosted by the higher-performing side through the 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup.
The two qualifying participants are placed in a de facto table, with three points for each win in the competition and one point for a draw, with the usual tiebreakers of goal differential and goals scored.
For example, in 2025, Cruz Azul hosted the final as their record of three wins and three draws gave them 12 points, while Vancouver Whitecaps had secured 10 points via two wins and four draws.
Date
Time (ET)
Match
Location
May 30
Toluca vs. Tigres
Mexico City, MEX
