Philadelphia Union and LAFC continue to battle for Supporters’ Shield

Philadelphia Union and Los Angeles Football Club are going head-to-head to win the Supporters’ Shield this season before the start of the 2022 MLS Cup playoffs. The Union have been unstoppable and after a 5-1 win against Orlando City at the weekend, they now lead the standings with 63 points from 31 fixtures, with three games remaining in the regular season.

The road to the title

Los Angeles FC dropped three valuable points in their visit to FC Dallas with a 2-1 defeat and dropped to second place in the MLS standings with 60 points from 30 matches. The ‘Black & Gold’ won’t be able to break the single-season points record (73) that was established by the New England Revolution last campaign with four games left.

LAFC still have the upper hand as they have one more game left than the Union and in the event of a tiebreak, they will win the 2022 Supporters’ Shield. The problem is that the schedule for LAFC is tougher than Philly’s. The ‘Black & Gold’ will go on the road to play against Minnesota on Tuesday and then host the Houston Dynamo on 18 September.

They will return to action by going travelling to face Portland on 2 October, who are fighting to secure a playoff spot this season, and seven days later they will conclude the regular season playing at home against Nashville.

The Union will play back-to-back away games, against Atlanta United on 17 September, who are below the playoff line, and on 1 October against Charlotte. Philly will conclude the campaign hosting Toronto on 9 October and hoping LAFC keep dropping points to secure the title. The Union are also on the verge of setting a new record for MLS with the fewest goals conceded in a 34-game season.