The 2023 Major League Soccer regular season, the 28th season of the MLS, kicked off in February and runs through to October 21st. MLS Cup Playoffs begin in late October and conclude with the 2023 MLS Cup on November.
2023 sees Los Angeles FC (+500 to win the MLS Cup) enter the competition as the defending MLS Cup and Supporters’ Shield champions and Philadelphia Union (+550) as the runner-ups, the latter having defeated New York City FC 3-1 in front of 19,770 spectators.
More than 10 million fans went to MLS games in 2022, proving that soccer is growing in the United States. This year sees St. Louis City SC join the league as an expansion franchise, taking the total number of teams to 29.
Due to the vastness of the United States, the MLS is split into the Eastern and Western Conferences to reduce the amount of travel required, although there is still plenty of that to do. An MLS season is split into two distinct parts. The regular season sees each team play a total of 34 matches, 17 at home and 17 away, taking on their conference opponents twice during the regular season and one non-conference opponent once.
Once the regular season is over, the top nine teams in each conference of the MLS standings progress to the Conference Quarterfinals, with the winner of each conference enjoying a bye into the Semifinals. These playoffs then pit the best MLS sides against each other, culminating in two teams facing off in the MLS Cup, the most prestigious title in the MLS.
The Supporters’ Shield is awarded to the MLS team with the best record during the regular season. Los Angeles FC won this title in 2022 for the second time in their history.
Popular MLS bets, like in most soccer leagues around the world, are those relating to individual matches although season-long MLS futures betting is also popular. Be A Better Bettor has MLS experts who regularly select their picks for games each week, so if you like to bet on the MLS you have come to the right place.
Best MLS Soccer Betting Lines
MLS betting odds vary depending on the sportsbook you use to place your wagers. We have several betting partners who offer a range of MLS betting markets from outright results, to first goalscorer, moneylines and over/under markets.
Check out the current list of betting partners to see if you qualify for an exclusive welcome bonus that you could use to boost your MLS betting bankroll.
More sub competitions
What Are The MLS Soccer standings
The MLS standings change week by week and are the best indicator to how an MLS team is performing. Teams often get off to a flying start only to falter as the season progresses.
You should expect a team towards the top of its respective conference to have much shorter betting odds than those teams languishing towards the bottom, although this isn’t always the case as home teams have a distinct advantage in the MLS, more so than almost any other soccer competition in the world.
Feast your eyes on the current MLS standings and use this information to help you make a profitable MLS bet this week.
MLS Teams Likely to Challenge for the MLS Cup
The 2023 MLS season is going to be long and hard-fought as at least a dozen teams will fancy their chances of MLS Cup glory thanks to the playoff element of the competition.
After winning the 2022 MLS Cup final, Los Angeles FC is the season's +500 favorite to win the 2023 competition. Any team that has a forward with the quality of Carlos Vela has a chance of winning. Vela has scored 70 goals in 119 appearances for LAFC; look for Vela to be among the top goal scorers in the competition this season.
2022's MLS Cup runner-up's Philadelphia Union are the +550 joint second favorites, to win the 2023 MLS Cup. Philadelphia finished first in the Eastern Conference table and qualified for the 2023 CONCACAF Champions League.
Last season, the Philadelphia Union ended up with the second-best goal difference (+46) in the history of the MLS! They were so great that four of their players made it onto the Best XI roster. One of those players was their goalkeeper, Andre Blake, who made the Best XI for the third time in his career. That's a record for any MLS goalkeeper. Last year, Blake had the best average for a goalie who played in all the games of the regular season.
LA Galaxy failed to secure their 6th MLS Cup in 2022, after finishing 4th in the Western Conference table and losing to their rivals, LAFC, in the Conference semifinals. Although they didn't take the cup home last year, they did manage to perform better than during the 2021 season, and fans are hopeful that 2023 will be the year they take back the title.
A good outside bet for the 2023 MLS Cup could be New York City FC, which is currently sitting at +1600 odds for this year's season. Last season, they lost Valentin Castellanos, who's now playing in La Liga, but they still managed to make it to the Eastern Conference Final, although they did end up losing to Philly. Now, they might have lost some of their key players, but they've still got plenty of talent left on the roster to fight for the championship title.
MLS Betting Tips
It always pays to do your own research whenever it comes to placing a bet, but you should also bear these statistics and facts in mind.
During the 2022 MLS season, there were a total of 476 matches played and 1,409 goals were scored. This is an average of 2.96 goals per game, which makes the over 2.5 goals market one to keep tabs on.
Also, MLS teams have a massive advantage when they play on home soil, partly because of the sheer size of the United States. Using the 2018 results as a guide, 14 teams won more than half of their home games, with each team winning at least six fixtures at home; only San Jose Earthquakes (who only won twice at home) failed to achieve this.
On the flip side, only one team, Atlanta United FC, won more than half of their away games with only seven teams winning at least six games on the road.
See below the top sportsbooks where you can wager online and choose the best one for you:
MLS Futures
- Los Angeles FC +450
- Philadelphia Union +550
- LA Galaxy +1400
- Inter Miami +1400
- Nashville SC +1600
- New York City FC +1600
- New York Red Bulls +1600
- Seattle Sounders +1600
- Atlanta United +2000
- Austin FC +2000
- FC Cincinnati +2000
- New England Revolution +2000
- CF Montreal +2500
- FC Dallas +2500
- Columbus Crew +3300
