For the third time since the club’s inception in 2020, New England Revolution II are headed to the playoffs after finishing the 2026 MLS NEXT Pro regular season in fifth place. After a few days of waiting, we learned who the club would face in the opening round on Wednesday during the Pick-Your-Opponent Selection Show.
After first-placed Crown Legacy chose the winner of the play-in between Red Bull New York II and Huntsville City FC, second-placed Chattanooga selected sixth-placed New York City FC II, and Atlanta United 2 chose seventh-seeded CT United, only fourth-seeded Columbus Crew 2 and fifth-seeded Revolution II remained.
The opening round of the 2026 MLS NEXT Pro Cup playoffs will mark the 15th all-time meeting between New England and Columbus. Crew 2 holds the historical advantage with an 8-2-4 record and one shootout victory.
While the historical advantage lies with Columbus, 2026 has been a pretty even series between the two sides. After Columbus secured a 2-1 win on April 18, the final two meetings of 2026 ended in draws, with each side taking home a shootout victory.
2026’s playoff opener gives New England a chance to exact revenge for the heartbreaking playoff loss in 2023. After securing wins over Union II and Red Bulls II, Revs II made it to the Eastern Conference final, where they hosted Columbus Crew 2.
After an incredibly hard-fought 90 minutes, it looked like we would head to extra time. Unfortunately, that idea dissipated in the first minute of stoppage time when Gibran Rayo slotted the ball home to seal a 1-0 win for Crew 2 and book their trip to the 2023 MLS NEXT Pro Cup Final.
The opening round of the playoffs is another case of Déjà vu for Pablo Moreira, who had an extensive run in Columbus, including an MLS Cup title victory as an assistant in 2020. During the selection show, Moreira reminisced on his time with the Crew and highlighted the three meetings the two sides had this year.
“I think we’ve had three great football matches, and are excited for a fourth," he said. "Ultimately, super excited to make a run at this.”
Moreira and Revolution II will begin making that run on October 17 when they travel to ScottsMiracle-Gro Stadium to face Columbus Crew 2 at 3:00 PM ET.
