The contrast couldn’t be starker. On one side you’ve got FC Cincinnati, already booked for the 2025 MLS Cup playoffs and racking up historic milestones along the way. On the other, LA Galaxy sit rock bottom in the standings, still fighting to avoid the humiliation of closing the season in last place. Saturday at Dignity Health Sports Park in Los Angeles puts these two completely different stories on the same field. Galaxy are playing for dignity, Cincinnati for validation, and the truth is there’s a lot more on the line than the table alone suggests.
Cincinnati chasing validation and stacking records
The Orange and Blue not only clinched a playoff berth for the fourth year in a row, they’ve also been hitting milestones that cement their place among MLS’s modern heavyweights. Last weekend’s win made them the first club since 2000 to notch 55 victories across three straight seasons, a mark that underlines just how much of an impact Pat Noonan has had. Away from home they’ve been just as ruthless. Nine road wins already in 2025, and a tenth would make them the first team in the post-shootout era to win more than ten away games in back-to-back seasons.
That kind of consistency doesn’t just happen. Since 2022, under Noonan, Cincinnati have put together 16 victories against Western Conference opponents in 25 matches. That’s no fluke. It comes down to careful planning, adapting to brutal trips like this one to Los Angeles — over 3,200 kilometers and four time zones. A lot of credit also goes to the support staff who make sure the players are fit, sharp, and ready to compete anywhere, anytime.
Galaxy fighting for pride in the middle of a mess
Meanwhile, LA Galaxy are slogging through a season that’s felt like a nightmare. They opened 2025 without a single win in their first 16 games, spent most of the year in freefall, and now sit on 17 losses with the league’s worst defensive record. Things have only slightly improved late in the season, with a 4-4-5 run in the second half. Their road form? Miserable at 0-9-7. At home it’s not great either, but at least a touch more respectable at 4-7-2 inside Dignity Health Sports Park.
Losing Riqui Puig, who tore his ACL in last year’s Western Conference Final, gutted the team’s creativity. Without their No. 10, the attack has been forced to lean on veterans and patchwork signings. Marco Reus, even at 36, leads the squad in goal contributions with five goals and nine assists. Joseph Paintsil and Gabriel Pec have chipped in five goals apiece, but even Reus might not feature this weekend after missing the last two games with a thigh injury.
Still, despite all the setbacks, there’s a faint pulse. Galaxy head into this clash unbeaten in three and with just one loss in their last six games since the Leagues Cup. And that tournament was, oddly enough, the high point of their year. They managed to grab third place and a spot in the 2026 Concacaf Champions Cup, beating Mexican sides Tijuana, Santos, Cruz Azul, and Pachuca before falling to Seattle in the semis. A small glimpse of hope, buried under what’s otherwise been a chaotic season.