The 2025 MLS season continues to chug along, which means it's time for ESPN's Power Rankings.
Who's climbing the table, and who's in free fall? Our writers studied the action from across Matchday 28 to come up with this week's order of all 30 teams in the league. Let's dive in.
1. San Diego FC
Previous ranking: 1
A 0-0 draw against Portland was enough to stay atop the Western Conference and clinch a playoff spot (the first team to confirm their postseason berth and the fastest expansion club to do so), but not enough to hang on at the top of the Supporters' Shield race. They're undefeated in their past five regular-season games and are behind Philly by just a point. But a revitalized LAFC and stolid Minnesota in their next two weekends could be stumbling blocks to their Shield-chasing dreams.
2. Philadelphia Union
Previous ranking: 4
The Union recovered from last week's stumble against the Red Bulls with a 4-0 victory at home against Chicago. In a weekend that saw multiple rivals drop points, Philly is back on top of the Shield standings, but the race is close. The team has two pivotal tests on the road up next. That starts with Cincinnati, who sit just two points and two spots below Philly in the Shield race.
3. Inter Miami CF
Previous ranking: 2
Miami beat Tigres in the Leagues Cup quarterfinals but settled for a draw against a lamentable 29th-place D.C. United on the weekend. Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba were both absent due to injuries but failed to produce much more offensively than a basement-dwelling squad that hasn't won in 11 matches. Miami is still in reach of the Shield, though, and focused on next week's Leagues Cup semifinal.
DC United and Inter Miami CF draw 1-1, with goals by Jackson Hopkins and Baltasar Gallego.
4. FC Cincinnati
Previous ranking: 3
Cincinnati came up short at home on Saturday, losing 1-0 to the Eastern Conference's eighth-place NYCFC. The Orange and Blue have had a busy transfer window, with multiple players leaving as well and many coming in. Combined with injuries, they looked like a team still finding its flow together. In the words of manager Pat Noonan, "Our whole team struggled tonight."
5. Seattle Sounders
Previous ranking: 5
Seattle beat Puebla in Leagues Cup last week, then trounced 24th-place Kansas City 5-2 at the weekend. Danny Musovski (who'll miss the rest of Leagues Cup due to a red card, with an added suspension for bumping an official) scored a hat trick. Next up? Back-to-back battles with LA Galaxy, first in the Leagues Cup semifinal and then in MLS.
6. Charlotte FC
Previous ranking: 9
After beating the Red Bulls 1-0, Charlotte has seven straight wins in the MLS regular season and are undefeated in eight games. That's the longest win streak for any team this season. That's solid stuff for the fourth-place side in the Eastern Conference, whose playoff position looks secure with six games left in the season.
7. Minnesota United
Previous ranking: 8
Minnesota is a steady, consistent team that doesn't need more of the ball or most of the shots to punish you. While getting outshot 27 to nine (six to three on target) and holding just 32% possession, the Loons secured a 3-1 win over RSL.
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8. Vancouver Whitecaps
Previous ranking: 6
Vancouver squeezed out a 3-2 win against St. Louis thanks to a controversial penalty call that Thomas Müller converted. The Whitecaps outshot and outproduced their visitors (seven big chances to one) but could be hearing from angry STL fans after that pen. Next up, the Whitecaps host first-place Philly in a big test for both teams.
9. Orlando City
Previous ranking: 7
Orlando wins games by multiple goals, but it loses them that way, too. The team got battered by Nashville in a 5-1 defeat that saw Luis Muriel score its lone goal five minutes before getting sent off in the 81st minute. Next up? A Leagues Cup semifinal against the team's Florida rivals, Miami.
10. LAFC
Previous ranking: 10
They're still building up to their end-of-season potential, but seismic new signing Son Heung-Min scored his first goal in MLS six minutes into a 1-1 draw with FC Dallas. That's one assist and one goal in three games (two starts) for the South Korean star. The future looks bright.
LAFC's Son Heung-Min gets his first MLS goal against FC Dallas.
11. Nashville SC
Previous ranking: 12
Nashville had three straight defeats in the MLS regular season before Saturday's 5-1 win against Orlando, which saw Hany Mukhtar and Sam Surridge both record a brace. Surridge is back on top of the Golden Boot race (20 this season), and Nashville (who are fourth in the Shield race) has a bit of momentum as it prepares to host Atlanta.
12. Columbus Crew
Previous ranking: 11
A few weeks ago, the Crew were looking like potential Shield contenders, but they're dropping all kinds of points against teams they should be beating. They haven't beaten a team since July 19, and that was 29th-place D.C. United. Since then, they have had two losses and a draw, this time a 2-1 defeat to the New England Revolution. They're still playoff contenders but need a shift in pace.
13. San Jose Earthquakes
Previous ranking: 14
San Jose's past four games have all ended 2-1, with the Quakes taking two defeats and two wins in the process. Bruce Arena's eighth-place squad is fighting to hang on to a playoff position, and Saturday's win against the 12th-place Dynamo could be consequential in that race.
14. New York City FC
Previous ranking: 15
After beating FC Cincinnati 1-0 in Ohio, the Pigeons have two wins in two games against teams in the top five of the Supporters' Shield race. Their race to make the playoffs is looking more secure, with 29th-place D.C. United up next, though more challenging opponents await the end of their season.
15. Chicago Fire
Previous ranking: 13
Philly is a tough team to beat, especially in Chester. Chicago suffered its first loss since July 12 in a humbling 4-0 loss at Subaru Park. The team will head home hoping to recover against the Revs.
16. New York Red Bulls
Previous ranking: 16
A week after beating Philadelphia (for the first time since 2019) 1-0, they lost to Charlotte 1-0. They fired off 15 shots but managed just three on target. But losing to the team with the longest win streak in the league this season, who hasn't conceded a single goal since July 19, isn't the worst result in the long run.
17. Portland Timbers
Previous ranking: 19
A 0-0 draw against San Diego is decent, as the Timbers put three shots on target against the first team to book a postseason berth this season. Portland finished the weekend in sixth place in the Eastern Conference, with its playoff chances looking solid despite some interesting tests upcoming.
18. Colorado Rapids
Previous ranking: 17
One minute you're scoring three goals against one of the worst teams in the league, and then the next minute, you're conceding three goals against one of the worst teams in the league. A week after beating 27th-place Atlanta 3-1, the Rapids lost to the team at the bottom of the league, the LA Galaxy 3-0. The last-place reigning champs scored their first in the seventh minute and things went downhill from there.
19. FC Dallas
Previous ranking: 21
They've got two 1-1 draws in two weekends, this time against LAFC after battling back from Son's first MLS goal in the sixth minute. Michael Collodi's five saves were key to the draw, as Dallas was outshot seven to two on target. This is a solid result for the 11th-place side as it battles to break into the playoff spots.
20. Real Salt Lake
Previous ranking: 20
While missing multiple players to injuries and suspensions (including Diego Luna), RSL fell 3-1 to Minnesota, marking three straight defeats in the MLS regular season. The good news? They play Kansas City next, after a few weeks' break to recover from bad momentum.
21. Austin FC
Previous ranking: 18
While battling for a postseason berth (they're in ninth place in the Western Conference standings, four points ahead of RSL), Austin showed up looking sleepy against Montréal, handing the Canadian club their second home win of the season and saving them from official playoff elimination this weekend. They can still make the playoffs, but that's a poor result.
22. LA Galaxy
Previous ranking: 23
The Galaxy are dead last in the Supporters' Shield race, but the reigning champs still pull off solid stuff from time to time. That includes this week's 3-0 win against the Rapids. Plus, they're in the Leagues Cup semifinal this week, adding some glimmer of hope that this could still be a trophy-winning season.
23. New England Revolution
Previous ranking: 24
Matt Turner made five saves in New England's 2-1 win against the seventh-place Columbus Crew. The Revs finished the weekend in 11th place and eight points short of the playoff positions. With seven games to play, it'll be tough to break in, but not impossible, and results like this weekend's are massive.
24. Houston Dynamo
Previous ranking: 22
The Dynamo are just a few places short of the playoff positions, but it's looking further and further out of reach. After losing 2-1 to San Jose, the Dynamo are winless in their past six games and haven't won a match since July 5. Sitting three spots below the playoff line, there's still just six points between them and ninth-place Austin FC, but they're running out of time to shift momentum.
25. Toronto FC
Previous ranking: 25
A week after beating Columbus, the Canadian side drew 0-0 in Atlanta. Neither team produced too much, though Toronto likely had the better of the chances. The team likely won't see a postseason but it's providing some interesting results en route.
26. St. Louis City SC
Previous ranking: 28
Despite being vastly outshot by Vancouver in Canada, St. Louis put in work at BC Place only to fall 3-2 at the death thanks to a contentious penalty call. That'll sting for awhile. The team heads home for two matches in Missouri against teams toward the bottom of the table.
27. CF Montréal
Previous ranking: 26
Montréal escaped official playoff elimination this weekend by beating Austin 3-2, but the end of its season still seems clear.
28. Sporting Kansas City
Previous ranking: 27
SKC hasn't won a game since July 4 (Colorado Rapids). They've also lost their past four by two or more goals while conceding 13 total between then. Sunday's 5-2 loss in Seattle wasn't pretty. That's the trend for SKC this August.
29. Atlanta United
Previous ranking: 29
This season can't be over soon enough for one of the most disappointing teams in the league. Atlanta United hosted Toronto and didn't manage much offensively, though they also didn't concede a goal.
30. D.C. United
Previous ranking: 30
They haven't won a game in 11 matches (their last victory was against Cincinnati on May 31), but they've had two draws in two weeks after five straight losses. Calling it even against a Messi-less Miami is still a laudable feat, but it's not enough to salvage the season. D.C. became the first team eliminated from the playoffs despite the result against the Herons.