The Pitch: MLS Rivlary Week Presented by Continental Tire Is Here

Over the course of seven days, MLS Rivalry Week presented by Continental Tire will take center stage, showcasing many of the best rivalry matchups across the league on MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app. The Columbus Crew and FC Cincinnati kick things off this Saturday as the reigning MLS Cup and Supporters’ Shield winners, respectively, go head-to-head in a battle of champions. On Sunday, the Portland Timbers look to assert their dominance over Seattle Sounders FC in the recent renditions of the Cascadia Cup as they strive to become the first of the two teams to claim a 15th regular-season victory over the other.

MLS Rivalry Week presented by Continental Tire will also feature matches between sides who introduced new club-record signings during the MLS Primary Transfer Window, as Liel Abada (Charlotte FC) faces off against both Hugo Cuypers (Chicago Fire FC) on May 15 and Gabriel Pec (LA Galaxy) on May 18, while Djordje Mihailovic (Colorado Rapids) goes toe-to-toe with Hernán López (San Jose Earthquakes). Petar Musa, who was FC Dallas’ club-record signing this offseason, will lead the front line during the club’s run of Copa Tejas matches against Austin FC on May 11 and Houston Dynamo FC on May 18.

Last season, Ohio became the state of champions as the Columbus Crew won their third MLS Cup title and FC Cincinnati lifted the first title of their MLS era, claiming the Supporters’ Shield with the league’s best record. This weekend, they will face off in the first Hell is Real Derby of 2024 to kick off MLS Rivalry Week presented by Continental Tire on Saturday.

The Crew mounted a come-from-behind victory in the Eastern Conference Final at TQL Stadium to clinch an MLS Cup berth in their last meeting, setting the stage for a fiery affair on Saturday at Lower.com Field. Cincinnati has never won at the Crew’s home stadium but with the memory of last year’s loss will only be extra motivation for reigning Landon Donovan MLS MVP Luciano Acosta as they look to grab the reigns from the Crew and reigning MLS Cup MVP Cucho Hernández.

This year’s Hell is Real Derby will also be bolstered by the additions of U.S. Men’s National Team defenders Miles Robinson and DeAndre Yedlin in their first season with Cincinnati, while U.S. Olympic hopefuls Aidan Morris and Patrick Schulte look to continue building their résumés to make the Olympic roster with a hallmark rivalry victory this weekend.

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