Want To Make The 2020 MLS Cup Playoffs Fair? Hold Them In Canada

When Major League Soccer finally released the remainder of the 2020 schedule on Tuesday, it became clear there would be no more regular season games north of the border.

Because of continued restrictions to cross-border travel related to the Covid-19 Pandemic, the Montreal Impact, Toronto FC and the Vancouver Whitecaps have all been forced to relocate to temporary home bases in New Jersey, Connecticut and Oregon, respectively. Shortly after the news dropped, Toronto coach Greg Vanney said it wasn’t clear whether his team would be able to return home from their base in Hartford, Conn., at any point during the stretch run, or when they might have time to play their Canadian Championship final against Forge FC.

That the three Canadian teams have to sacrifice months at home to ensure the 26-team league can complete its season may have been unavoidable. Major League Baseball’s Toronto Blue Jays also had to accept a similar fate this season, establishing a temporary home in Buffalo, N.Y.

But unlike MLB, MLS could easily repay its debt of gratitude to its trio of Canadian clubs by hosting its entire 17-game postseason north of the border. In fact, staging the postseason in a Canadian bubble or series of bubbles — similar to the one MLS used during the July MLS is Back Tournament — might the fairest way to decide an MLS Cup Champion in pandemic times.

A major reason is the specter of the November international window that precedes the postseason. As it stands, current league protocols require those players called in to international games to complete a quarantine upon their return prior to rejoining their club in live competition. The requirement is so potentially debilitating to some clubs that MLS players are currently refusing to release players called into October matches in South America.

Canada’s 14-day quarantine requirement is even longer. But moving the playoffs to Canada would actually allow the league to push back its postseason to wait out those returning players without worrying about inclement winter weather. Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver all have suitable and available indoor stadiums. Toronto’s training facility has two air-supported bubbles to allow for indoor training. And Vancouver’s December climate is temperate enough — with average lows above freezing — that training is outdoors at the Whitecaps’ National Soccer Development Centre would still be realistic.

The current MLS single-elimination format means an American team could still win MLS Cup while spending no more than five weeks away from home, including a two-week period between arrival and a team’s first game. The 14 teams that fell short of the semifinals would likely be looking at just over three weeks away. That’s a fair sacrifice, considering the league’s three Canadian teams will be spending more than twice that much time in the United States between now and the league’s Decision Day.

A few American clubs might balk at the idea, particularly those where fans have been allowed to return to games. But in deciding a champion, competitive fairness should supersede the chance to recover a small portion of matchday revenues. The fairest place to finish competition in 2020 is in the True North.

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