Major League Soccer announced Tuesday that the 2020 All-Star Game, Campeones Cup and Leagues Cup have all been called off as the league continues to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. The regular season has been suspended since March with no clear date to return as the pandemic continues in the United States and Canada. Some teams have been allowed to return to small training, pending local lockdown measures.
The main event of the three canceled, the All-Star Game, was originally scheduled for July 29 in Los Angeles. For the first time, it was going to be the MLS All-Stars vs. Liga MX All-Stars. MLS said the 2021 MLS All-Star Game and festivities will still take place in Los Angeles. MLS remains hopeful of playing an All-Star team from the Mexican league next season, saying that the two sides will continue discussions.
The second edition of the Leagues Cup, which is between MLS and Liga MX teams, was scheduled for July through September but both leagues decided to cancel the competition. The Campeones Cup, entering its third edition and featuring the champion of MLS against the winner of the Liga MX Campeon de Campeoenes, was slated for Aug. 12 in Seattle. The event will return in 2021.
The three events being called off is not a major surprise as the immediate future of sports in the United States and Mexico remains unclear. In Europe, leagues are slowly returning, and the German Bundesliga played matches starting last Saturday.
Major League Soccer has said it hopes to get as many matches in this season as possible. When the league was suspended in March, each team had played just two games.
