The Los Angeles Football Club finished the 2025 MLS regular season as the third seed in what ended up being an ultra-competitive Western Conference.
The squad’s last match on the road against the Colorado Rapids ended in a 2-2 draw, who just barely missed out on a wild-card spot.
The tie left LAFC in third place, meaning they will now take on Austin FC in a best-of-three series.
Austin won 1-0 both times the two sides played each other during the regular season.. Austin typically employs a low-block strategy, meaning they tend to pull all of their players deep inside their own half to deny the opposition any open space and clear-cut chances. They also often create their chances through quick counterattacks.
Their style of play was seen most clearly in their most recent match, a 2-1 loss to the San Jose Earthquakes, where Austin’s lone goal came from a counterattack.
LAFC has yet to break down Austin’s low block so far this season, but the Black and Gold have a few advantages heading into the series.
LAFC star forward Son Heung-Min, who has registered nine goals and two assists in his 10 appearances, has yet to face Austin. Son had not yet signed for LAFC when they faced Austin at the start of the regular season in March, and the forward was on international duty for the most recent matchup.
With LAFC finishing as the higher seed, meaning if this series were to go to three games, the tiebreaking match would take place at BMO Stadium. Metrics show that the Black and Gold are a much stronger side when playing at home. Not only do they have an expected 1.8 goals per game, but they also averaged an impressive 2.06 points per game throughout the 2025 regular season.
LAFC will look to utilize their home-field advantage in the first match on Oct. 29, but will need to prove that they can defeat Austin’s low-block and neutralize any potential counterattacks.