MLS Standing Predictions + New Kit Rankings - One Sentence Only

After writing over 3,000 words on an article on the Revs and their off season, I figured it'd be a good and fun time to write a little less for an MLS standings prediction, with jerseys included as well.

Here I will predict both the East and West conference predictions, along with the jersey for each team being ranked by myself.

Now of course these are only my predictions, and I am still learning about the MLS so my "ball knowledge" may be weak and most likely will be wrong. Lets dive right into these predictions and rankings.

For reference, here are all of the new 2026 MLS jerseys to reference to when I am making my rankings on them. I will rank them on a 1-30 scale, 1 being my favorite released and 30 being my least favorite.

Eastern Conference Standings:

1. Inter Miami CF - Lionel Messi is still on the roster, plus signing Germán Berterame will excel this Miami attack to become even better in front of net. Jersey Ranking: 27th - Its a plain black jersey with nothing special to it, just doesn't get me excited at all for a jersey
2. Nashville SC - Christian Espinoza on a free, Reed Baker-Whiting, Maxwell Woledzi, fantastic off season with a revamped roster, lost Zimmerman but found his replacement quickly, this is a year they are true contenders. Jersey Ranking: 19th - I like the logo in the middle of the jersey because they actually make it work, but its pretty plain apart from that
3. FC Cincinnati - Will bounce back from an underwhelming 25' campaign, love the signing of Bryan Ramirez, not a fan of losing Luca Orlleano, but the squad is still very strong. Jersey Ranking: 24th - I am just not a fan of the zigzag designs and how they just randomly cut off, its doing a bit too much for me, but at least they kept the team colors in mind
4. Charlotte FC - Lost minimal in the off season, I like the addition of Luca de la Torre, Idan Toklomati will be the real deal this season. Jersey Ranking: 7th - I am a sucker for a sky blue jersey and they perfectly did that with this kit, very sharp and solid, not doing too much either
5. Atlanta United FC - Hot take but Tata Martino will bring Atlanta back, Latte Lath/Miguel Almiron will breakout finally, defense still has gaps but the attack will be an absolute wagon this season. Jersey Ranking: 12th - I like the colorway they took with this jersey, looks very sharp, but KEEP THE STRIPE IN THE MIDDLE!
6. Chicago Fire - Still don't trust Berlhalter at the helm, but I can't knock the team when the attack is as solid as it is, Gutierrez is a loss but the team stays solid through the off season. Jersey Ranking: 26th - I am not a fan whatsoever of the collar on the jersey, and the circle in the middle throws it off, also they gotta get rid of the Carvana sponsor sooner rather than later
7. New England Revolution - Marko Mitrovic will revive this team, the young core signed in the off season has experience with Marko, the playoff caliber roster will finally qualify for the playoffs. Jersey Ranking: 5th - Man this kit is a beauty, all bias aside, some are saying they are doing too much but I think they are doing just enough, I love how it reflects off the badge and no more roundel around the badge - chefs kiss
8. Philadelphia Union - The defense is pretty weak after losing Kai Wagner and Jakob Glesnes, also losing Tai Baribo/Mikael Uhre in the attack will be a loss, but I trust the midfield and Milan Iloski to sneak the team into the wildcard. Jersey Ranking: 1st - This jersey is absolutely spectacular, the blue and gold work perfectly with each other and the nods to Philly are amazing
9. Columbus Crew - Max Arfsten will be a contender for DPOTY, the losses of Darlingon Nagbe/Jacen Russell Rowe are tough losses, but the defense is still super solid and the attack still has some assets that will just sneak them in. Jersey Ranking: 23rd - Its just a very basic jersey, nothing special about it, also drop the collar, just not a fan overall
10. Orlando City SC - Alex Freeman is a huge loss in the defense, not fully sold on the attack, Ojeda will be great again but they just won't get it done. Jersey Ranking: 20th - Its not necessarily a BAD jersey, but I am just not a fan of the yellow/gold, but the designs on the jersey are good
11. New York City FC - Alonso Martinez is a golden boot contender, but the defense is just not strong enough to be a playoff contender. Jersey Ranking: 6th - This is a very sharp kit, the colorway is awesome, I love how the badge looks, the jersey pops and I am a massive fan of it
12. Toronto FC - Josh Sargent, wow, but they are still Toronto, the signings of Zimmerman and Daniel Salloi are nice and will bring some leadership but they don't have the roster to make the playoffs. Jersey Ranking: 15th - I like how the stripe is in the middle and how the badge looks, but other than that its pretty average
13. New York Red Bulls - Its tough to knock Emil Forsberg and Eric Choupo-Moting, but I just do not think they can get it done this season with their defense, even with new head coach Michael Bradley at the helm. Jersey Ranking: 28th - This is the definition of doing too much, the lightning bolts are way too much and I think on the field its gonna look really funky, not a fan at all
14. D.C. United - Tai Baribo is the new Christian Benteke of the roster, solid signing of Louis Munteanu from Romania, but the team does not have nearly enough talent to smell the playoffs. Jersey Ranking: 17th - This kit is very simple, but the colors look solid on it and they aren't doing too much with it
15. CF Montreal - It's Montreal, they haven't made many moves to improve their team, not much else to say. Jersey Ranking: 29th - It looks like Montreal were trying to do something, but the kit designer fell asleep halfway through. Why do the stripes fade away and look like they're glitching? Not a fan at all.

Western Conference Standings:

1. LAFC - A full season with Heung-Min Son, 2 great midfield signings in the offseason with Stephen Eustaquio and Jacob Shaffelburg, while losing little to nothing in the offseason, this team is going to be tough to stop. Jersey Ranking: 2nd - This jersey is so sharp and so bold, the design is super nice and the black and gold work perfect with each other, fantastic kit.
2. Vancouver Whitecaps - Losing Jayden Nelson is tough, but the roster is still so strong, a full season of Thomas Muller, it's tough to say they will not contend for the cup again. Jersey Ranking: 8th - I'm a big fan of how simple this kit is, I'm a huge fan of the collar design as well, simple is sometimes better and it shows here
3. Seattle Sounders - Seattle seem to just stay consistent year by year, losing Obed Vargas and Reed Baker-Whiting is of course tough, but they still have a super solid roster and a great attack, oh and did I mention they still retain one of the best coaches in the league. Jersey Ranking: 18th - They kept the home kit very basic this year, a little too basic in my eyes, the blue collars nice but I wish I saw more of that in the kit
4. San Diego FC - The team stays super solid, Anders Dreyer will have an MVP caliber season as he did last year and San Diego will stay solid. Jersey Ranking: 7th - I am a sucker for a sky blue jersey and they perfectly did that with this kit, very sharp and solid, not doing too much either
5. Austin FC - What an improvement in the attack for this team signing Jayden Nelson and Facundo Torres, losing Osman Bukari will be tough but man the attack looks solid. Jersey Ranking: 14th - This jersey is super clean, I am a massive fan of the alternate badge on the kit as well, the colors look nice as well, but the design on it is meh
6. Houston Dynamo FC - Signing 2 DPs in an off season is BOLD for the Dynamo - but I am a fan, bringing Bogusz back to the league is gonna be great for the Dynamo, but losing Griffin Dorsey and Brooklyn Raines will hurt, but still a solid team. Jersey Ranking: 16th - This kit is a lot for sure, but I love the color way, though the design is doing a bit too much in my eyes
7. LA Galaxy - The Galaxy are back - but not really, no Riqui Puig will be tough, but acquiring Jakob Glesnes, Joao Klauss, and Justin Haak are some great assets for this team and will reinforce this lineup and bring them back into the playoffs. Jersey Ranking: 9th - This jersey looks like a classic Galaxy kit with the classic Galaxy colors, they didn't do too much with the home kit and kept it pretty simple, I am a fan
8. Real Salt Lake - Diego Luna is in a World Cup year and will need to step up if he wants a spot or even a starting spot on the national team, and I think he will have a fantastic start to the MLS season pre World Cup, they have also made some super solid moves in the offseason, but the loss of Brayan Vera will make an impact defensively. Jersey Ranking: 21st - Basic basic basic, the hoops are fine and the classic RSL color way is nice, but its just too basic for me
9. Portland Timbers - 3 super solid signings coming in for the Timbers, but losing David Ayala will be tough and the defense is still weak and the goalkeeper situation will be a tough one for them as well. Jersey Ranking: 10th - I love the color way and design on this jersey but the shoulder stripes are a bit funky which bumps it down just a bit
10. Minnesota United - I am not sold on this Minnesota team, the attack is gonna be weak and James Rodriguez will not be as good as many think he will be. Jersey Ranking: 4th - This team always knocks it out of the park with their jerseys and they did not fail this year, the design is awesome and the colorway is fantastic yet again
11. Colorado Rapids - This Rapids team just does not excite me, losing Cole Bassett is a huge loss and the team just doesn't have that STAR on it like other teams. Jersey Ranking: 22nd - The jersey is just way to simple for me, for an away jersey its too basic, but I do like the collar
12. FC Dallas - This Dallas team is just pretty weak, Petar Musa will be good, but other than that the team isn't great and there's nothing else to say about them. Jersey Ranking: 13th - I usually am not a fan of hoops, but Dallas did hoops pretty well this season with their classic red and blue colorway and I do like it
13. St Louis City - Joao Klauss is a big loss and they did not make a move to go and replace him, it was a super weak offseason which reflects the rough season that they will have in 2026. Jersey Ranking: 30th - The gold just does not work, the design does not work, nothing about this kit works and it is going to look really weird and bad on the field
14. San Jose Earthquakes - Losing half of your roster in the offseason and not replacing them is not ideal, Timo Werner will be fine but he wont excel like other European signings and they will struggle this season. Jersey Ranking: 11th - The design on the kit is awesome, but in my eyes it still looks a little to much like a kid made it at a summer camp, also not a huge fan of the design going over the sponsor, but I do still really like it
15. Sporting KC - Dejan Joveljic is the only redeeming quality of the team, they barely have a roster and barely have coaching, there is really nothing positive about this team. Jersey Ranking: 3rd - SKC do it again with a super solid kit, the colorway on the kit is absolutely fantastic and the design is awesome

I myself am so excited for this MLS season. The rosters are improved, more European players joining the league, and honestly the jersey's aren't too bad. Of course these are just my opinions, and like I said I will most likely be wrong, and that's okay.

This is still around 2000 words, sorry.