Concacaf Champions Cup Round of 16 – Tuesday Preview | OneFootball

The UEFA Champions League isn’t the only competition entering the Round of 16. North America’s answer is also entering this phase on March 10th as well.

And there are no more pushover fixtures here. As the Round of 16’s home-and-away ties kick off this week, we shouldn’t see too many of the blowouts that we witnessed back in February. Additionally, the five teams with byes in the first round enter the tournament for the first time:

All of Tuesday’s games will be broadcast live in the U.S. on FS2.

Philadelphia Union vs. Club América

Kickoff: 7:00pm ET / 4:00pm PT Subaru Park, Chester, Pennsylvania

Club América is a far cry from their dominant heyday. They’ve muddled through a lackluster Liga MX campaign so far, earning 4W 2D 4L as they rest in eighth place. They were less than convincing in their Round 1 ties against Honduras’ Olimpia, advancing with an aggregate 2-1 score and drawing the second match 0-0 at home. Recent losses to Chivas, Tigres and Juárez have shown them to be defensively brittle and lacking their usual offensive punch.

Outside of their utter demolition of Trinidadian club Defense Force by a 12-0 aggregate, Philadelphia Union have had a rough 2026. For only the second time in the club’s sixteen year history, they’ve started an MLS season with three consecutive losses. Granted, their last two defeats followed clutch scores by the opposition (NYCFC’s Tayvon Gray in the 99th minute and Toronto’s Dániel Sallói in the 85th), nullifying otherwise decent efforts. They also have very little recovery, as that Toronto fixture was played on Sunday. A 48 hour rest, even between home matches, is brutal.

And don’t expect to see 16 year-old phenom Cavan Sullivan, who got five contributions in Round 1, take the pitch unless it’s as a substitute.

Monterrey vs. Cruz Azul

Kickoff: 9:00pm ET / 6:00pm PT Estadio BBVA, Guadalupe, Mexico

The only fixture to feature two Liga MX sides presents an intriguing picture of teams on different trajectories. 

Monterrey is struggling, currently in ninth place, and reeling from an emotional loss in the Clásico Regio to local rivals Tigres UANL. Consistency has been their bugbear; in their last six matches they have three wins and losses. They lost Germán Berterame to Inter Miami back in February after the Herons met the striker’s $15M release clause. Midfielders Luca Orellano and Sergio Canales are filling in his gap with three goals apiece.

Mexico City’s Cruz Azul sits atop the Clausura on 25 points and is riding a five game winning streak. Their two highest goalscorers, José Paradela and Augstín Palavecino, have five apiece (only four fewer than the entire Monterrey team). La Maquina are far from perfect, they have conceded 0.9 goals per game, but their offensive strength usually compensates for any defensive frailties.

They cruised through the Round 1 ties beating up on Vancouver FC by an aggregate 8-0 margin. They won’t find this one as easy.

LAFC vs. Alajuelense

Kickoff: 11:00pm ET / 8:00pm BMO Stadium, Los Angeles, California

Before you dismiss this match as just another minnow vainly trying to take a bite out a shark, here are a few facts about Alajuelense.

So there’s some history and pride that comes with this side, even if they don’t have the star power of LAFC’s Son Hueng-Min, firepower of Denis Bouanga, or goal-stopping nous of Hugo Lloris.

LAFC played five competitive matches in 2026, winning all of them, four by shutouts. Their only concession was to Real España when they were already five goals up. LAFC certainly will have the edge, particularly in front of their home crowd.

But Alajuelense won’t be an easy side to trod over, even if their recent Clausura performance has been lacking. They’re currently in sixth place (out of ten teams), two spots off the final play-off berth. Of course, with seven games remaining they could just as easily end up top of the table given the mercurial nature of the Costa Rican league.