It is time now at the last stage of the countdown to the next frontier of MLS and with the successful debut of the San Diego FC as the 30 th team in the league, the question that the soccer world is demanding to know is: where will the 31 st and 32 st team land? The historic grass of whichever city receives the call will not be just a location, but a stage on which the next battle will take place in the unstoppable procession of MLS to establish itself as a powerhouse on the global stage.
The validity of MLS was confirmed by its Commissioner Don Garber, boosted by the 2023 transfer of Lionel Messi to Inter Miami and anticipation of the 2025 MLS Cup. The league was worth a lot more, as the club was estimated at a valuation of 1.45 billion, and their revenues will be close to quadrupling, which was 56 million. There are 5 clubs that are worth more than a billion dollars, expansion fees is currently set at $500 Million.. Average club value is estimated to be 767 million and growing at 6 percent per year to capitalize on long-term growth of assets based on naming rights, sponsorship and mixed use development.
That being said, here are the two Tier 1 Expansion Markets fighting to take the two subsequent spots, and the dark horse that has the potential to break into the party.
West Coast Power Play: Las Vegas vs. Phoenix
There is perhaps no greater high-risk, high-reward-type of market than Las Vegas and Phoenix. They each present irresistible attraction, yet each presents interrogatives which may either succeed or fail their offers.
Las Vegas is currently considering expansion to the MLS since April 30, 2026, when Grant Gustavson suggested moving the Vancouver Whitecaps to Las Vegas. This will involve the permission of the owners of Whitecaps and MLS as well as privately-funded stadiums. Though expansion only bid exists, it will focus on relocation given that the Whitecaps have no offers locally since their sale in December 2024. Gustavson will fund the project privately through his team but no information regarding the location and terms is yet known.
Phoenix (Mesa): The Phoenix Valley of the Sun has been the longest-running will they / won’t they story in league history. Since 2017, the door has been knocking on the door by Phoenix Rising FC which is supported by Didier Drogba and a Goldman Sachs stadium funding deal. However, the actual momentum change was in November 2025, when Mesa officials approved unanimously to redevelop the former Fiesta Mall location into a potential MLS and NWSL stadium complex. The bid is no longer a mere speculation now that it has a 200-acre piece in northwestern Mesa. The stadium location is Mesa, but the branding is to the Phoenix market. Should the stadium concept pass the tests of the desert heat and political red tape, Phoenix may finally receive its long-awaited franchise.
Heartland Dark Horse: Indianapolis
Although the West Coast is getting the headlines, do not underestimate Indianapolis. The Circle City has been quietly developing its case over the years, Mayor Joe Hogsett starting a formal outreach expansion bid in April 2024 and an ownership group led, reportedly, by former Chelsea executive Tom Glick. The city has also submitted a proposal to come up with a new downtown sports complex which would comprise of a soccer-specific stadium. The Eleven Park development has already had its groundbreaking with Indy Eleven and Keystone Group; however, the alternative downtown plan of the city has brought certain tension.
Nevertheless, as of early 2026, Indianapolis continues to work on its distinct ownership group commitments. No public announcement of a possible ownership group exists and no particular commitments are made. In February 2026, Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray said the stadium deal as it exists is unlikely to pass. The 32 slot is to go to Indianapolis, although they have not as yet overtook Vegas in the pecking order. Should Las Vegas or Phoenix falter on the concept of financing the stadiums, Garber calls Indianapolis first, but then they should get their own house in order.
The Sacramento Lesson: The Burkle Collapse and the Long Road Back
In the case of such markets as Sacramento, the new lesson is obvious: MLS now refuses to accept the promises. It demands proof. In 2021, the lead investor Ron Burkle backed out of the so-called done deal, and it was believed that the city’s MLS dreams were buried, but the dreams remained alive. But Sacramento hasn’t given up entirely. The new majority owners of Republic FC, Wilton Rancheria, the first Native American tribe to become a majority owner in men’s professional sports, have been carrying out talks with other tribes in California about investing in Republic FC in case of an MLS bid coming to reality. Another big stadium the club is constructing a new Railyards stadium, Phase 2 construction plans to increase to 20,000 seats to include a full roof structure, allowing the club to make an MLS leap. Although they are not the champions, the ambitions of Sacramento are yet not shut down entirely.
The Stakes
MLS is on crossroads. Stay at 30 and have exclusivity or go to 32 and replicate the NFL coast-to-coast presence? The following two franchises will not be offered to anyone who is not yet shovel-ready ready with a stadium and a billionaire-backed front office at the minimum and will cost well north of $500 million.
The four-year cycle of speculation is now finished, and once more 30 teams later the next chapter of the league will be written in the desert, the desert-like, or the heartland.
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