For the past decade-plus, Major League Soccer has offered an official fantasy game on their website (and app) to entertain the kind of sickos that would read an article on a regional soccer website about fantasy futbol, and hopefully draw in some new fans. Which it did, to an extent.
Now, with the 2026 season kicking off this weekend, that era is over. MLS fans have now been scattered across a few competing apps. We will be active on the main three platforms: Kickbase, which is now the official partner with MLS; Sofascore, a popular international app and website that has a similar format to the old MLS game; and Fantasy Utd, a newer offering that lets you bid on players to have under your exclusive control. Details on how to join us in each particular game can be found at the link below and are summarized at the end of this article.
Andrew Tingkang
Due to this fracturing, my weekly rankings and advice are going to have to be a little more generic. Good players are good players, good matchups are good matchups, and scheduling crunch and injury woes affect all. But the reality is that each game has its own scoring system and some players will be favored on certain platforms. For example, defensive midfielders are much more valuable on Kickbase, whereas they might not be useful on Sofascore. The particulars remain to be seen, but you will have to do a little due diligence to adjust to whichever game you are playing. I may highlight particular scoring quirks as they come up, and give some platform specific advice, as I do below, but don't count on it.
I have decided to be excited about this new era. The people running these platforms care about fantasy much more than MLS did, and the variety of scoring rules, team building methods, and league formats is exciting. Plus, Kickbase is offering substantial (cash) prizes to weekly winners and a year-long winner. I think I will have fun and I hope you do too. Now, on to the rankings.
Just noting before we go further that if you are playing Fantasy Utd, your initial transfer deadline to make your bids to build your team is fast approaching. The Sounder at Heart MLS 2026 deadline is 7:15 pm Pacific this evening (Thursday), and then you have 24 hours to complete your transfers and set up your squad.
Week 1 Quick Rankings
Goalkeepers
Thomas (SEA), Blake (PHI), Takaoka (VAN), Stuver (ATX), Ferree (SD)(*)
Defenders
Makhanya/Harriel (PHI), Laborda/Blackmon (VAN), Duah/McVey (SD), Ragen/Roldan (SEA), Budget: Iago (ORL), Barroso (CHI)
Midfielders
Evander (CIN), Mukhtar (NSH), Muller (VAN), Rusnak (SEA), Ojeda (ORL), Berhalter (VAN), Reus (LAG), Gil (NE), Tverskov (SD), Budget: Triantis (MIN)
Forwards
Messi (MIA)(Q), Son/Bouanga (LAFC), Dreyer (SD), Surridge (NSH), Musa (DAL), Pec (LAG), Iloski (PHI), Budget: De Rosario (SEA), Cabrera (VAN)
Week 1 schedule
For better or worse, schedule watching is not quite as important this year. Generally, transfers are locked close to or at the first kickoff of the week. In Kickbase, your 6 or 11 players are set at kickoff with no changes. On Sofascore, you can use your bench players by subbing them in manually, but you cannot add or drop players. Fantasy Utd is a little more flexible, but you can't just pick up anyone you want. So, I plan to focus less on time slots and focus more on good, interesting and important matchups.
I'll also note that a handful of teams are in the middle of three games in approximately eight days: Nashville, LAFC, Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Vancouver and the Galaxy. The four Eastern teams had no problem with their first leg road matchups in CCC, while Vancouver only managed a 0-0 draw in Costa Rica, and the Galaxy play tonight in Panama. At any rate, I do not think any of these teams will need to do much rotation, if any, this weekend, with the CCC home legs upcoming for all the MLS sides. But, then again, it is MLS, so fair warning.
The Good
Cincinnati vs Atlanta – Tata Martino is back but there is no sign that Atlanta has fixed its defense. Look for Cincy players to kick off on the front foot.
Philadelphia at DC – Same here; DC has some better options, but there are a lot of moving parts and I don't have faith things will be all that improved off the bat.
Vancouver vs RSL – The Whitecaps are a continental juggernaut at this point and I do not see that RSL has the horses to compete.
Nashville vs New England – Nashville had a huge upgrade in snagging Cristian Espinoza in free agency and New England made some moves that might get them to average. Tough to tell who to favor here...
San Diego vs Montreal – This could get ugly. It does not seem that the Saputos care in the slightest about seriously competing in MLS.
The Interesting
St. Louis vs Charlotte – STL had some improved play down the stretch last year and streamlined their roster. They might have made some noise in the playoffs last year if their turnaround had come a couple of weeks earlier. Meanwhile, Charlotte was dangerous all year but couldn't quite compete with the top tier. This one will be an interesting, tone-setting game that also serves to kick off the regular season at 11:30 am PT on Saturday.
San Jose vs Kansas City – Bruce Arena got the investment in the team he wanted with Timo Werner arriving in the Bay Area, though he isn't ready for this weekend's match. Kansas City, meanwhile, has only barely started their rebuild after the departure last year of Peter Vermes. San Jose could be a new and improved team with a better balance of attack and defense, but the jury is out. This may end up looking a bit like a preseason match, but those are fun, aren't they?
The Important
LAFC vs Miami – The marquee matchup of the weekend, though Messi is questionable with injury, so Miami may need to do this one without him. They are quite loaded anyway. And LAFC is coming off of a complete pummeling of Real Espana down in Honduras. Hell of a matchup to put on Week 1.
LA Galaxy vs NYCFC – The Galaxy have finally done the work they needed to do last year to keep the team good and function in Puig's absence. Whether that comes together in Week 1 is a question, but NYCFC visiting will be a good test. I am not as convinced the Pigeons will be a top team again this year, but they have been very consistent. This should be fun to watch ahead of the Sounders match.
Thoughts and Players
Defenses
Philadelphia - They are on the road but are playing DC. I like that matchup. Makhanya and Harriel are probably the top defenders.
Vancouver - I think they’ve still got it. Laborda or Blackmon if you can afford them.
Austin - They are playing Minnesota, who lost some important pieces over the past year and are still working on replacing them (James Rodriguez isn't ready yet, as far as I know). I am not convinced Yeboah, Gressel, Pereyea is the trio to get it done. Go with Biro.
San Diego - Hosting Montreal is always good for a shutout. Duah or McVey are best, though Bombino may have the highest ceiling if you want to bet on him starting. Note that Duran Ferree should start Week 1 as Pablo Sisneiga, their #1 keeper now, is suspended for Week 1 and Dos Santos is injured [EDIT: I missed Dos Santos's injury previously so swapped my recommendation to Ferree].
Seattle - A home opener against Colorado should be a good time for Seattle. Take your pick of Roldan, Ragen, or Nouhou if you are feeling spicy.
Value: Iago (Orlando) seems to be fairly underpriced and has been starting with Orlando at CB in preseason. Especially for Sofascore, could be someone to pick up and hold as a cheaper option.
I also think there's a shout for Barroso (Chicago) as a value pick with a couple of decent matchups coming up (Houston, Montreal, then DC week 4). He has been starting at RB in preseason. I'd suggest Waterman but it looks like he may have been supplanted by Mbokazi, it remains unclear.
Midfielders
These five guys should take no explanation: Evander, Mukhtar, Muller, Rusnak, Ojeda (note that Ojeda and others are classified as Forwards on Sofascore). Every-week guys from last year should be top tier when healthy this year.
Here are five more to consider:
Berhalter - He scored more than Mukhtar last year under Kickbase's scoring and is still a top tier option on other platforms when Vancouver is in a good situation.
Reus - I think the Galaxy will be much improved this year and Reus will be scoring very highly when healthy.
Triantis - The Minnesota midfielder looked electric at times late last season and yet is priced as a depth piece.
Gil - I'm not convinced New England has the stuff to make good on Gil's prime this year, but it is still Gil's prime and thus he's always a threat to have huge games. I bet against him too often last year, and that was with Porter in charge.
Tverskov - This is primarily just for Kickbase, but I think he has an excellent matchup and will crush it week 1.
Forwards
Messi (Q) - But only if we get a good indication he is playing ahead of the match. As of right now he hasn't been practicing so probably stay away (and give your budget a break), but he might be worth the risk anyway.
These others are obvious: Son, Bouanga, Dreyer, Surridge. These guys are worth the budget space.
Here are five more:
Musa - Absolute monster and Dallas should have a more stable attack this year. Plus, it is Toronto coming to town.
Pec - As I expect the Galaxy to be better, I expect Pec to reascend to the very top tier of MLS attacking options.
Iloski (classed as a mid on Sofascore, as are others) - The path has been cleared for Iloksi to dominate the Philadelphia attack. He is probably crazy good, though Damiani is no slouch either.
De Rosario - He's dirt cheap on Kickbase and Sofascore, and should be leading the Seattle attack. I strongly advise you to pick him up.
Cabrera - He is likely starting at LW for the Whitecaps until Gauld is ready to play in April. Another cheap option for a strong team, though I am less certain he is locked in to start. He did start down in Costa Rica, going 90.
Captain Considerations
Messi (Q) - He's questionable but is always a mega captain when he plays. On Sofascore, you can captain him and then sub him out and move the captaincy from him to someone who plays on Sunday. On Kickbase, you'd just have to roll the dice that he gets quality minutes.
Dreyer - Home against Montreal, and they already eviscerated Pumas at home. I cannot reasonably imagine this one being close.
Son/Bouanga - Both worthy options at home, it should be a superstar matchup against Miami and they usually deliver. Miami can be beat on defense, I would not be surprised to see this one end 4-2 one way or the other.
Rusnak - Last game of the week, Rusnak should feature in a juiced-up Seattle attack. He was one of the best last year when healthy and I see no reason for Seattle to start slowly against Colorado that's now missing Bassett.
Where and how to play
There is more in my article earlier from earlier this week, but this is how to play the main three platforms. If you have more questions, drop a comment, find us on Discord or reach out on Bluesky.
Kickbase – Download the app to play the official MLS fantasy this year. Inside the app, you can play weekly Rush challenges that use special rulesets, join the MLS 2026 Challenge in the Rush section which will be a season-long public competition, or join our Arena league using this link on mobile: Sounder at Heart League (spots are limited, I may update this with a new league if it fills up but no guarantees). Note that you have to make a separate team for each league or challenge you join, as each may have slightly different rules.
Sofascore – Sign up on their website or app. Create your team of 15 players (11 starters and 4 subs) from a $150m budget and join any leagues you like. Your team counts for all leagues. Our Open league is linked here: Sounder at Heart Open League.
Fantasy Utd – Sign up on the app, and join the Sounder at Heart Fanzone. There is a league there you can join, but note that the deadline for initial player bids is tonight at 7:15 pm Pacific. Make your bids and then, of those bids you win, you can execute them to build your team once the transfer deadline passes. If you don't fill out your team initially, you can go purchase other players after the deadline for slightly increased prices. Your total squad will be 25-ish players, and you'll select 11 from them each week to start, able to sub players in or out until their kickoffs happen and their spot is locked.
Good luck everyone on kickoff weekend! Should be a fun year.
