The 5 Powerhouse Teams Poised to Dominate and Claim the 2026 Leagues Cup

If it seems like soccer across North America has barely paused since the 2026 FIFA World Cup, that impression isn't far off. Yet the sport is about to shift into an even higher gear, as 18 Major League Soccer clubs join every Liga MX side this week for the opening of the 2026 Leagues Cup — the summer showpiece that has featured the bulk of North America's two biggest domestic leagues since 2023. 

This year's edition represents the second featuring 36 teams, leaving 12 MLS clubs on the outside looking in, and will award 2027 Concacaf Champions Cup spots to the champion, runner-up, and third-place finisher. 

Each participating club will play three Phase One matches against opponents from the opposing league, before the top four from each league advance to the knockout rounds running through August and September.

Here, Sports Illustrated identifies five teams with a genuine shot at hoisting this year's Leagues Cup trophy.

5. Philadelphia Union

The Philadelphia Union have rediscovered their footing since returning from the World Cup hiatus, looking dramatically improved from the side that sat bottom of MLS heading into the break. In their first three matches back, interim boss Ryan Richter has guided them to three consecutive victories, with 16-year-old Cavan Sullivan and 18-year-old Neil Pierre establishing themselves as the team's standout performers. 

With the season having turned a corner, the Union now have a genuine shot at reaching the 2026 MLS Cup playoffs, though the most attainable silverware for them remains the Leagues Cup. If they can extract the best from Sullivan and Pierre while benefiting from Kai Wagner's energetic comeback from Europe, they could well claim a trophy despite a disappointing league campaign so far. 

 Phase One Opponents: Cruz Azul, Necaxa, Santos Laguna

4. Cruz Azul

The standout side throughout the 2025–26 Clausura and Apertura, Cruz Azul will look to make history as the first Liga MX club to claim the Leagues Cup in its modern format. Although the Mexican giants won the trophy in the competition's inaugural soft-launch edition in 2019, they have yet to triumph in the expanded version. 

Under manager Joel Huiqui, they have hit the ground running in the 2026 Apertura with two wins and a draw from their opening three fixtures, having finished third in both half-seasons of 2025–26. Just two months after claiming their tenth Liga MX title with a 2–1 victory over Pumas and adding a Campeón de Campeones crown against Toluca, further glory appears well within reach — particularly given José Paradela's outstanding seven goals and five assists during the Clausura. 

Phase One Opponents: Philadelphia Union, New York City FC, Chicago Fire

3. Chicago Fire

Robert Lewandowski is up and running. After netting a brace in his home debut on Matchday 19, the Polish superstar is in fine form and primed for the Leagues Cup as the Fire chase their first trophy in two decades. While he's no Lionel Messi, there is precedent for a high-profile midseason signing steering a team to Leagues Cup glory — as Messi demonstrated with Inter Miami in 2023 — and there's a genuine possibility Lewandowski could fuel a deep run for the Fire as well. 

With manager Gregg Berhalter reshaping his tactical approach to accommodate Lewandowski, Chicago has begun to click, and the former FC Barcelona striker is playing with tremendous confidence. Factor in the form of MLS All-Star Philip Zinkernagel and the assured shot-stopping of Chris Brady, and this is a well-rounded side capable of making a serious run at the Leagues Cup. 

Phase One Opponents: Necaxa, Santos Laguna, Cruz Azul

2. Vancouver Whitecaps

The Vancouver Whitecaps are not quite the force they were before offloading U.S. men's national team standout Sebastian Berhalter to Middlesbrough last month. Even so, they have continued to perform at a high level and benefit from one of the more manageable Phase One schedules, despite a road trip to Mexico to face Tigres UANL. 

On Matchday 19, the Canadian club were unfortunate not to take all three points in a 1–1 draw with LAFC, having dominated their Western Conference rivals across 90 minutes. Designated Players Thomas Müller and Ryan Gauld both impressed with relentless intensity, appearing alongside each other in the starting lineup for the first time. 

Having reached the 2025 MLS Cup final and the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup final, the Whitecaps have demonstrated their ability to perform under pressure and against top-tier opposition in both MLS and Liga MX. That pedigree, combined with the rumored imminent signing of a Berhalter-caliber replacement, should give them a legitimate chance at lifting the trophy. 

Phase One Opponents: Atlanté, FC Juárez, Tigres UANL

1. Inter Miami

No MLS club has become more synonymous with the Leagues Cup than Inter Miami since Messi's arrival in 2023. The Argentine icon immediately propelled the Herons to victory in the first expanded edition of the tournament that summer, netting 10 goals to claim the title, Golden Boot, and MVP honors. The following year, Miami came agonizingly close again before suffering a heartbreaking final defeat to the Seattle Sounders in front of a packed Lumen Field. 

While the hunger to win might naturally fade after such sustained success — particularly following the 2025 MLS Cup triumph — the club places enormous value on asserting themselves against Mexican opposition in the Leagues Cup. 

The timing of the tournament also works in their favor. Messi and Rodrigo De Paul have returned following Argentina's defeat in the 2026 World Cup final and are now building a dangerous partnership with Casemiro anchoring the defensive midfield. Throw in Luis Suárez's seven goals across four MLS appearances, and the team looks close to peak form as it enters the competition against some of Liga MX's less formidable sides.

Phase One Opponents: Atlético San Luis, CF Monterrey, Club Puebla