Beasts of the Southeast: 2026 MLS Season Kick Off Edition

By Brian Maurer

Photo courtesy of CJ Hellner/TopBin90

With MLS’s calendar shift coming next season, there have also been reports that a new five-division format will be in place. Since Charlotte FC is reportedly grouped in a Southeastern division alongside DC United, Nashville SC, Atlanta United, Orlando City, and Inter Miami, we opted to bring back our column, Beasts of the Southeast, to provide updates on all the MLS clubs in the region.

This will be a monthly column that provides updates on all six clubs, including power rankings and player of the month awards.

Since the season is about to kick off, we will present this first column in alphabetical order, and then proceed with rankings in our next column, which will be published at the end of March/beginning of April.

Let’s dive right in!

Atlanta United

Atlanta United is coming off its worst season in club history. The Ronny Deila hire was a complete one-year flop, and the Five Stripes are also locked into big transfer deals along the frontline that have not worked out. They have asked Tata Martino to come back and right the ship.

This coaching hire is a doubling down on the nostalgia that the Miguel Almiron signing brought last year. The question for this club is, can Martino find that magic from the early Atlanta days with a roster that wasn’t built initially for him?

Under-the-radar player to watch

Newly signed U22 Initiative midfielder Tomas Jacob (21) looks set to have a role out of the gates in Atlanta United’s midfield or on the backline. Atlanta is locked into several big contracts and transfers along their frontline, and so they looked to improve the backline and in the middle. It looks like Jacob could get a crack at the early minutes as a young prospect brought in from Necaxa. He played for Newell’s Old Boys before that.

Feb/March schedule

The Five Stripes open with a tough road matchup out of the gate, but return home in March to a more favorable slate of games if they can build some early momentum during their home stretch. If they get early home wins, Martino is likely to harness more belief that he can turn this club around.

• Saturday, 2/21, 4:45 PM ET - at FC Cincinnati

• Saturday, 2/28, 7:30 PM ET - at San Jose Earthquakes

• Saturday, 3/7, 7:30 PM ET - vs Real Salt Lake

• Saturday, 3/14, 3:15 PM ET - vs Philadelphia Union

• Saturday, 3/21, 7:30 PM ET - vs DC United

Charlotte FC

Head Coach Dean Smith and the squad have been preaching continuity and cohesion all preseason, and that is displayed in the limited amount of turnover on the roster. The team performed well last season, and the aim was to bring the majority of their key players back and add just a few new pieces around them. The main name is Luca de la Torre, who looks to be a key part of the midfield this year and will look to bring a new evolution to what this club can do in 2026.

Under-the-radar player to watch

Charlotte FC’s starting XI will be the same as last year, with just a couple of adjustments to get in-prime players like de la Torre into the fold. Young wing prospect Rodolfo Aloko (19) was brought in on a substantial transfer fee. He may not have a substantial role out of the gate, as there are multiple players on the depth chart in front of him, but he is a prospect to watch if he can earn a role with the First Team.

Feb/March schedule

Charlotte FC’s schedule starts relatively favorably for them, starting with two road games against Western Conference teams that struggled in 2025 and have had to do some readjusting. They then follow those matches up with a string of three straight at home. Austin FC made the playoffs last year, but they definitely still have question marks. Miami is a very tough ask, but they will be coming off a midweek CCC game, and the NY Red Bulls failed to make the playoffs for the first time since 2009. There are plenty of points for the Crown to take in this early stretch.

• Saturday, 2/21, 2:30 PM ET - at St. Louis City

• Saturday, 2/28, 10:30 PM ET - at LA Galaxy

• Saturday, 3/7, 7:30 PM ET - vs Austin FC

• Saturday, 3/14, 7:30 PM ET - vs Inter Miami

• Saturday, 3/21, 7:30 PM ET - vs NY Red Bulls

DC United

DC United is coming off a Wooden Spoon season in 2025, and the club’s response was to go out and spend big, especially in the attack, bringing in Tai Baribo (~$4.6m) from Philadelphia and Louis Munteanu (~$7m) on a club-record fee. They have a new coach, again, and a lot of new faces on this roster as they aim to rebuild and find a way back into the playoff picture; something they haven’t done in since 2019.

Under-the-radar player to watch

2026 1st overall MLS SuperDraft pick Nikola Markovic (21) looks to be a player turning some heads in DC. The young centerback helped lead NC State to the NCAA College Cup final this past year before earning a Generation Adidas contract heading into the 2026 SuperDraft. Manu Duah transitioned really well for San Diego FC as their First pick last year, and Markovic will be aiming to do the same in DC.

Feb/March schedule

DC United has a tough slate to begin its rebuild. Both of their home games out of the gate are against teams that finished top three in the EC last season. Their road stretch is against more favorable opposition, but road form is far from guaranteed in MLS. This is tough sledding for a squad built around a lot of new pieces.

• Saturday, 2/21, 7:30 PM ET - vs Philadelphia Union

• Sunday, 3/1, 2:30 PM ET - at Austin FC

• Saturday, 3/7, 4:30 PM ET - vs Inter Miami

• Saturday, 3/14, 8:30 PM ET - at Chicago Fire

• Saturday, 3/21, 7:30 PM ET - at Atlanta United

Inter Miami

Inter Miami had a massive finish to their campaign, winning the MLS Cup by beating the Vancouver Whitecaps in the final. They then flexed their aspirations to be an MLS super team by acquiring several high-profile additions this winter. German Berterame for ~$15m from Monterrey was the big headline, but they also fixed their leaky backline by bringing in 2025 GKOTY Dayne St. Clair as a free agent, former Houston Dynamo defender Micael on loan, and then fullbacks Sergio Reguilon and Facundo Mura.

Also, finding a way to keep Tadeo Allende as a permanent transfer after his massive season and record-setting MLS Cup playoff run was another big-time play. Messi and co. It looks like a classic case of the rich getting richer, and it appears to be on the brink of becoming a true MLS super team this season. All eyes will be on their CONCACAF Champions Cup performances out of the gate.

Under-the-radar player to watch

It’s hard to pick out a young prospect in a group that has so many in-prime players and superstar veterans on it. The young stud Mateo Silvetti already broke out during the tail end of 2025, but another under-the-radar move I failed to mention above is David Ayala (23) from the Portland Timbers. He has been a starter in MLS for the last couple of years, but his star could elevate to another level during his time in Miami.

Feb/March schedule

Inter Miami has another jam-packed season and multiple primetime matchups for MLS to try to capitalize on. Opening weekend is a star-studded matchup on the road against LAFC, and then they have a Sunday Night Soccer primetime game against Florida rivals Orlando City. Miami’s March gets more crowded as they begin their Champions Cup games, where they could potentially match up against Nashville SC, a team Lionel Messi is all too familiar with down the stretch last season.

• Saturday, 2/21, 9:30 PM ET - at LAFC

• Sunday, 3/1, 7:00 PM ET - at Orlando City

• Saturday, 3/7, 4:30 PM ET - at DC United

• 3/10-12, TBD - vs Atletico Ottawa/Nashville SC (CCC Rd of 16 First Leg)

• Saturday, 3/14, 7:30 PM ET - at Charlotte FC

• 3/17-19, TBD - vs Atletico Ottawa/Nashville SC (CCC Rd of 16 Second Leg)

• Sunday, 3/22, 1:00 PM ET - at NYCFC

Nashville SC

Nashville SC made noise when they signed the top player in free agency, Cristian Espinoza, to help bolster their attack. Now the Coyotes have another playmaker who can help feed Sam Surridge and Hany Mukhtar. The right winger will also likely get plenty of looks at goal himself, as Mukhtar will look to get him his fair share of chances as well.

After the Espinoza move was announced, it was clear many MLS pundits felt the tables had turned in Nashville’s favor heading into 2026. A common projection for this club is that they take a jump this season and are considered one of the top-tier teams in the Eastern Conference. This is all on paper at the moment; the club will have to prove it on the field. Although the field proof showed itself a bit last night as Espinoza, Mukhtar, and Surridge all combined for a nice goal in CONCACAF Champions Cup action.

Under-the-radar player to watch

USYNT midfielder Matthew Corcoran (20) is a player to watch for Nashville this season. There is likely some recency bias here, as he was just given a start in the Coyotes' CCC matchup last night and had an assist in that game, but he was also on the USYNT U20 World Cup roster last fall and then made two starts for Nashville in their First Round playoffs against Inter Miami.

Feb/March schedule

Nashville SC, like Miami, has a very full February and March schedule, especially if they advance past Atletico Ottawa in CCC. They should feel they are big favorites to advance after their 2-0 result last night, which means they line up against Miami, where they will be looking to exact some revenge after being dismantled in the MLS Cup Playoffs last season.

• Tuesday, 2/17, 8:00 PM ET - Nashville won 2-0 at Atletico Ottawa

• Saturday, 2/21, 8:30 PM ET - vs New England Revolution

• Tuesday, 2/24, 8:00 PM ET - vs Atletico Ottawa

• Saturday, 2/28, 8:30 PM ET - at FC Dallas

• Saturday, 3/7, 8:30 PM ET - vs Minnesota United

• Saturday, 3/14, 6:15 PM ET - at Columbus Crew

• Saturday, 3/21, 6:15 PM ET - vs Orlando City

Orlando City

Orlando City has had what looks to be a low-key but solid offseason in terms of transfers. Something that was desperately needed after how they fell short of their goals in 2025. The most recent reports of trading for Griffin Dorsey to replace outgoing Alex Freeman was a great last-minute add. The question is, how quickly can their new signings come in and adapt to help the club meet their high expectations?

Under-the-radar player to watch

Take your pick on Brazilian U22 Initiative prospects here. Both forward Tiago (20) and defender Iago (20) come from Brazil on big transfers and look like they could be given opportunities to make an impact sooner rather than later. 

Feb/March schedule

Orlando City has a fun schedule to start the year. They should feel good about their home games outside of Miami, but it's always exciting to play your bitter in-state rivals on Sunday night primetime. Their road matchups are far less favorable, but the Lions should see this as an opportunity to do some damage in their conference with five straight EC games to kick off 2026.

• Saturday, 2/21, 7:30 PM ET - vs NY Red Bulls

• Sunday, 3/1, 7:00 PM ET - vs Inter Miami

• Saturday, 3/7, 2:30 PM ET - at NYCFC

• Saturday, 3/14, 7:30 PM ET - vs CF Montreal

• Saturday, 3/21, 6:15 PM ET - at Nashville SC