Lionel Messi enters the MLS play-offs: when and who will Inter Miami meet in the first round?

InterMiami have completed their 2025 Major League Football regular season. On the decision day, Lionel Messi and his teammates achieved a 5-2 victory over Nashville SC and are now fully focused on the Eastern Conference playoffs.

The Herons finished third in the standings with 65 points, the result of 19 wins, 8 draws and 7 losses. That puts them among the top contenders in the East, and in the first round of the playoffs they will face a team that is having an inconsistent year – coincidentally the same team they just beat: Nashville SCwho finished sixth with 54 points.

During the regular season, InterMiami and Nashville met twice, with the Herons winning both games, 2-1 at Chase Stadium and 5-2 at Geodis Park. Still, these results are no guarantee of what will happen in the postseason.

In reality, MessiThe team knows this all too well from their experience in 2024, when they were the top team in the regular season and winners of the Supporters’ Shield, only to be eliminated in the first round of the play-offs by Atlanta United, who had finished ninth.

When will the first round of the MLS Playoffs be played?

Inter Miami will host Nashville SC at Chase Stadium in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference first-round playoff series. That round, which can last a maximum of three matches, starts on Friday, October 24 and will continue – if necessary – until Sunday, November 9.

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What is the format of the MLS Playoffs?

MLS uses a knockout system that is different from most football tournaments around the world. The first round is played as a best-of-three series. The higher seeded team will host Game 1, and the lower seeded team will host Game 2.

A draw is not allowed in these matches. If a match is tied at the end of regular time, it goes straight to a penalty shootout to determine the winner. If a team wins both first two matches, they automatically advance. If each team wins one, a decisive third match will be played at the higher seed’s stadium.

Beginning in the conference semifinals, the format becomes single-elimination, with the higher seed hosting a one-off match. These four matches will be played between November 22 and 23. The winners will advance to the Conference Finals, scheduled for November 29 and 30, also in a single-match format. The MLS Cup final will then take place on Saturday, December 6.