Photo Kyle Grantham

With the Philadelphia having four games to play in the 2026 MLS regular season, it is time to make a maximum possible points chart for MLS’s Eastern Conference. Such a chart should focus towards whom the Philadelphia Union might play in the playoffs, were they were to qualify for them.

The eastern conference’s currently known playoff details

By virtue of its record against Inter Miami (second place as of this writing), Nashville SC has clinched first place in the Eastern Conference. They also lead by 12 points over current Western conference leader Vancouver in the race for the Supporters’ Shield. Nashville still has a chance to set a new MLS record for points in a single season. Clinching first in the conference means that in the playoffs’ first round Nashville will play the winner of the “play-in” eastern conference wild card game between the eighth and ninth place teams.

Inter Miami, the New England Revolution, the Chicago Fire, and Charlotte FC have all clinched eastern conference playoff berths. They continue to play for the seedings to host one of the three-game series —home, away, (home if necessary) — that together comprise the first round of the playoffs.

Philadelphia specifically

Although Philadelphia are close, they have not yet clinched a playoff spot.  They are currently in sixth, two points and two places below hosting one of those first round playoff series.

• Third place New England will be their immediate opponent this coming Saturday at Subaru Park.
• Next, first place Nashville will host them in Tennessee’s capital next Wednesday.
• Then, the following Saturday they travel to intense rival ninth place Cincinnati in the extreme southwest of Ohio.
• And they finish on Decision Day by the Delaware in Chester against tenth place Toronto.

Because we read interim head coach Ryan Richter as a politely spoken but ambitious goal-setter, we are guessing that since May his private, unspoken goal for his team may have been to host a first round series in the playoffs. With articulate patience and grace he has steadfastly refused public comment on any Philadelphia Union performance topics further into the future than the next game immediately facing his team.

As you will see charted below, the Union are currently bunched with Chicago and Charlotte competing for fourth place in the east. Third place New England would have to lose twice and second place Miami three times for Philadelphia to catch either of them, and that only by having won all twelve of the points currently available to it. But a fourth place finish seems plausible given the team’s run of form since the World Cup. 

Similarly to its current distance below New England and Miami, the Union enjoy a degree of separation above Orlando, Cincinnati, Red Bull New York, Toronto, Columbus, New York City, and D. C. All those teams currently seventh through 13th still have reasonable ambitions towards participating in the wild card game, and subsequently the first round of the playoffs.

At this writing only 14th place Atlanta and last place Montreal can be reasonably discounted as playoff hopefuls.

Were Philadelphia to be so fortunate as to climb to fourth, they would seem most likely to face Chicago , Charlotte, or Orlando.

Maximum points chart

Our chart’s layout did not emerge perfectly for which we apologize.

“Remaining Opponents” are listed left to right from the most immediate game in the leftmost column to the final Decision Day one all the way to the right.