Orlando City’s 2021 regular season schedule presented by Orlando Health is out – 34 exciting matchups over the course of a nearly seven-month gauntlet. The Lions are looking to build on 2020, a season in which they reached the MLS is Back Tournament final, finished fourth in the Eastern Conference and won their first-ever playoff game.
What will they need to make it through 2021? Which games are we looking out for? Which period presents the stiffest challenge? Here’s everything you need to know.
Format
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, travel will be limited once again in 2021. Orlando City will face just two Western Conference teams all season, heading to Sporting Kansas City on April 23 and hosting the San Jose Earthquakes on June 22. All travel will be chartered.
As the league was expanding, Orlando City would typically play a few teams three times in a season, often frequent foes like Atlanta United and New York City FC. This season, Orlando plays a trilogy against a whopping six teams – Atlanta, Inter Miami CF, FC Cincinnati, Toronto FC, CF Montreal and Nashville SC. With Toronto and Montreal set to begin their seasons in Florida, these are the six clubs closest in distance to Orlando.
It will also be somewhat more difficult to reach the postseason in 2021. The league is returning to the 2019 playoff format in which seven teams from each conference qualify for the Audi 2021 MLS Cup Playoffs, meaning 14 of the 27 clubs will make it, or 51.8%. This is the lowest percentage of qualifying clubs since the 2010 season, when exactly half of the league’s then-16 teams reached the playoffs. Of course, Orlando would have made it in 2020 under any format.
Schedule Breakdown
Orlando City will begin the 2021 season enjoying the comforts of home. Four of the Lions’ first six games will take place at Exploria Stadium, including the home opener on April 17, presented by Orlando Health, against Atlanta United and a nationally-televised contest against New York City FC. The Lions also enjoy home contests against FC Cincinnati and Toronto FC in the opening period.
The league will break for three weeks in the beginning of June for the FIFA International window, returning to play on June 19. It’s here where the pace really picks up for Orlando City. The Lions come back to action with three games in six days, culminating in the season’s first showdown with Inter Miami on June 25 in Fort Lauderdale. That game will mark the first of three meetings between the two Florida sides in 2021 and the only one to take place in South Florida.
August and September are perhaps the most trying part of the schedule for Orlando. The Lions will face four mid-week regular season games across the two months, including two trips to Nashville. August sees both home games against Miami and the season’s lone trip to Atlanta, plus the year’s first appearance of defending MLS Cup champions Columbus at Exploria Stadium on September 4. September concludes with a three-game away swing at defending Supporters Shield winners Philadelphia, New England and Nashville. Additionally, Orlando City is set to participate in the 2021 Leagues Cup, with a matchup against a Liga MX side in the opening round set for the week of August 9.
After breaking for the October FIFA window, Orlando faces a brutal six-game run across three weeks. Montreal, Columbus and Nashville will all visit the City Beautiful, while the Lions visit Cincinnati, New England and Montreal, the latter coming on Decision Day on November 7. The 2021 MLS Cup, to be televised on ABC, is set for December 11.
Oscar Pareja and Luiz Muzzi have built a deep and talented squad. It’s just about time for it to be put to the test.
