COLUMBUS – Major League Soccer has announced the pairings for its tournament, to be held next month in Florida.
In the World Cup-style format, the Crew SC will in Group E of, along with Atlanta, Cincinnati and the NY Red Bulls when play begins July 8 at the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex in Orlando.
The top two teams from each of the six groups, plus the four best third-place finishers advance to knockout stage, which starts with a round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals and a championship match scheduled for Aug. 11.
The tournament winner advances to a spot in the 2021 Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League.
Orlando, Seattle, Toronto, Real Salt Lake and LAFC are the tournament’s other top seeds.
The league’s regular season was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic in March.