Breaking down the May 2026 schedule for NYCFC: MLS and the U.S. Open Cup | OneFootball

Well, to the New York City FC fans, congratulations! Everyone survived April, which saw the Pigeons fail to win any games in Major League Soccer. The Boys in Blue are currently in the middle of a six-match winless streak, and hopefully that will end at the beginning of May. They lost out on points when they should have won against teams like St. Louis City SC and FC Cincinnati.

The only good part of April was that NYCFC won both of their U.S. Open Cup games, recently beating the New York Red Bulls in the Round of 16 to book a spot in the quarterfinals. So, while the winless streak does not extend to all competitions, at least there were some wins during the month. But, they need to win in May with five MLS games and a U.S. Open Cup fixture. Otherwise, the Pigeons might kiss their ability to make the postseason goodbye.

More importantly, the Bronx side and the rest of MLS will pause the season at the end of May, not playing for almost two months due to the World Cup. The players do not want to leave on a sour note. With hope on the mind, here is a look at NYCFC's May schedule.

NYCFC's May 2026 schedule

Sunday May 3: NYCFC vs D.C. United

The first game of May will take place at Citi Field when the Boys in Blue welcome D.C. United to Queens. Like NYCFC, the team from the District has a 3-4-3 record. The difference is that they won their last MLS match while the home team is winless. At the very least, some of the players are familiar with the goalkeeper for D.C., Sean Johnson. The former player and captain for the Boys in Blue will be reunited with a team and fans who loved him and his time with the club. Ideally, those who have played with him will figure out how to put the ball past him, as they did when he was with Toronto FC.

Sunday, May 10: NYCFC vs Columbus Crew

Another team that has a similar record is the Columbus Crew. NYCFC will host the Ohio side at Yankee Stadium, playing the final home game until July 25. Again, with the long break due to the World Cup, it is vital that the team gets a positive result at home. They have already struggled at the baseball stadiums, so losing or even a draw would be unacceptable to the fans. The good news is that the Bronx team ended a winless streak against the Crew the last time the teams faced, winning 3-2. Hopefully, that will help them on the quest for three points.

Wednesday: May 13: NYCFC at Charlotte FC

NYCFC will travel to face Charlotte FC, seeking their third-ever win at Bank of America Stadium. The team won their first two games at the stadium during the 2025 MLS Cup Playoffs for the first time in all competitions, and of course, that final game led the Queens side to the next round of the postseason. Meanwhile, they lost the home fixture during the current MLS winless streak, in part due to Kristijan Kahlina's incredible, but annoying, performance. Players like Nicolás Fernández Mercau and Agustín Ojeda need to put the ball past the goalkeeper and break him down.

Saturday, May 16: NYCFC at New York Red Bulls

As mentioned, NYCFC won the first Hudson River Derby in the U.S. Open Cup. They have now won the last three meetings, and the Pigeons will seek to win the fourth one in a row. They know they can play and win at Sports Illustrated Stadium. At the same time, unless things change in the next few weeks, the two teams could enter the battle with similar records in MLS. Hence, anything can happen.

Tuesday, May 19, or Wednesday, May 20: NYCFC vs Columbus Crew

The quarterfinals of the U.S. Open Cup will take place on May 19 or May 20. The Pigeons will find out exactly when they will play the game, but they do know that they will face the Columbus Crew on the road. It will be less than two weeks from the MLS fixture, so the team should be prepared for this matchup.

Saturday, May 23: NYCFC at Nashville SC

The last match before the MLS break for the World Cup will be away to Nashville SC. Based on the standings as of today, this will be the most challenging MLS game of the month, and there is a real chance NYCFC could enter the break with a loss. However, if the Boys in Blue turn things around and become more defensively sound to stop Hany Mukhtar and Sam Surridge, then they could maybe steal a point like they did last season, or possibly more.