The International Break – MLS Impact | OneFootball

The MLS does not suspend games for FIFA’s International Break, which runs from today, March 17th, through next Thursday, March 27th. Now, thanks to Sorare Deke over on X (follow him @soraredeke), we have some insight into which teams will be most impacted by players going home to play for their country.

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Hm. Funny how that bye week for Miami JUST SO HAPPENED to coincide with when Argentina has two games. Collusion? Nah, couldn’t be. Never mind that Messi has “retired” from international soccer, we all know that he’d be sporting La Albiceleste is a hot second if he was asked nicely.

Not All Teams Impacted Equally

The two most impacted teams are Atlanta United (8 players) and Philadelphia Union (7 players). Five players will be missing from: Real Salt Lake, Red Bulls New York and Minnesota United. Four are gone from: Vancouver Whitecaps and NYCFC. Only three teams have a single player out (Montréal, Seattle Sounders and St. Louis CITY); all the rest have two or three.

Of course, the numbers only tell half the story. Some of these players suit up for U20 or U17 squads and weren’t likely starters anyway. But others will be sorely missed. Six of these call-ups are starting goalkeepers. Players like LAFC’s Denis Bouanga, Vancouver’s Ali Ahmed or Cincinnati’s Kevin Denkey will dull the strike power of their respective teams. Study the grid and see if your favorite team got stung.