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Major League Soccer playoffs start this week

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  1. Erik
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    A rarity in soccer leagues, MLS has a post season rather than just a table. But it's pretty weird in its execution. Here's a quick explainer: Round 1 - Knockout round hosted at the higher seed's...

    A rarity in soccer leagues, MLS has a post season rather than just a table. But it's pretty weird in its execution. Here's a quick explainer:

    Round 1 - Knockout round hosted at the higher seed's stadium. Seeds 3-6 play each on both sides of the bracket.

    Round 2 - Reseeded based on who advances out of round 1. The 1 seed gets the lowest seeded team out of round 1, the 2 seed gets the highest. This is a series of two games, one home, one away for each team. Winner is decided by aggregate, with away goals weighted higher to break ties.

    Round 3 - Semi-finals, so each of the remaining teams on each side of the bracket play each other. This is the same as round 2, one home, one away, decided by aggregate.

    Round 4 - The final. This is a one off game, hosted by the team with the most points during the regular season.

    The first games are this week, with the finals all the way in December. There's big potential for some very cold weather games, including snow games, making this already odd dynamic even more crazy.