The Leagues Cup Final will take place on Sunday, August 25th with Columbus Crew facing Los Angeles FC, although the tournament is played by Liga MX and MLS clubs to strengthen the competitive level of both leagues, amid a binational project that seeks to strengthen sports relations in the future with the long-term objective of generating a competitive sports bloc.
The Leagues Cup Final will be Columbus Crew vs LAFC
This will be the fourth edition of the tournament, founded in 2019 and which was suspended for two years: in 2020 because of the pandemic and in 2022 as part of its formalization process to have the endorsement of Concacaf.
In its first editions it was a small tournament, with four representatives from each league, who faced each other in the United States, while as of last year, it already included 47 teams from both leagues, belonging to three countries, including Canada, which has two franchises.
Which teams have been Leagues Cup champions?
Cruz Azul was the first champion of the tournament, in its inaugural edition, held in 2019. In the Final, they defeated Tigres 2-1 in Las Vegas with goals by Yoshimar Yotún and Jonathan ‘Cabecita’ Rodríguez, while for Tigres, Guido Rodríguez scored.
After the suspension due to the pandemic, Leon won the 2021 edition by defeating the Seattle Sounders 3-2. In that edition, La Fiera came from behind with a brace from Ángel Mena and another goal from Emanuel Giglioti, while for the Sounders, Cristian Roldan opened the scoring and Nicola Benezet scored a late equalizer.
In 2022, the tournament was replaced by a series of friendly matches called Leagues Cup Showcase, in which five matches were played between teams from both leagues:
- LA Galaxy 2-0 Chivas
- Los Angeles FC 0-0 (5:6 p.) Club América
- FC Cincinnati 3-1 Chivas
- Nashville SC 3-3 (4:2 p.) Club América
- Real Salt Lake 1-2 Club Atlas
Finally, last year, Inter Miami won its first official tournament, in the presentation of Lionel Messi as its star reinforcement for the season, defeating Nashville SC in a penalty shootout. In regular time Lionel Messi opened the scoring and Fafa Picault equalized for Nashville.
As of the 2023 edition, the tournament has official status and awards tickets to the CONCACAF Champions League, as part of the new CONCACAF club ecosystem, and all clubs from both leagues will participate.
What time will the Leagues Cup final between Columbus Crew vs LAFC be played?
The Leagues Cup final match between Columbus Crew vs LAFC will be played tomorrow August 25 at Lower.com Field in Columbus Ohio.
Kickoff is at 21:00 ET; the match can be enjoyed on Apple TV