CHESTER, Pa.— On Saturday, the Philadelphia Union return home for their final match of the 2026 MLS regular season when they host Eastern Conference opponent Toronto FC for a 4:00 p.m. contest on Decision Day.

While the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference is largely settled with Philly already clinching a postseason berth and Toronto FC officially eliminated from contention, there is still plenty for the home side to play for as they prepare for the playoffs.

The Union currently sit in sixth place in the Eastern Conference standings with 47 points, but they have not officially locked up that seed. While a win would guarantee them that position, a draw or loss, depending on the outcomes of a few other matches, could make things interesting.

A draw paired with an FC Cincinnati win over Nashville SC would bump the Union down to seventh place in the standings. While not ideal, they would still stay on the opposite side of the bracket from the Supporters’ Shield winners.

A loss, however, makes things more interesting for the Boys in Blue. Should both the Columbus Crew and FC Cincinnati pick up wins over Charlotte FC and Nashville SC, respectively, the Union would fall all the way to the eighth seed and host Orlando City SC in the wild-card round before potentially facing Nashville in the playoffs.

That is the worst-case scenario in terms of seeding. However, to keep things simple, depending on the outcomes, the Union can finish anywhere from sixth to eighth place.

That is where winning Saturday’s match solves the puzzle.

In my opinion, a win serves another purpose on Saturday. You could say it would be a way for this team to “get right” or build some momentum heading into the best-of-three series against either New England or Inter Miami.

While the Union enjoyed a historic 15-match unbeaten run following the World Cup, they have suffered two losses in their last three games and have not picked up a win since their 3-1 victory over the Chicago Fire five matches ago.

Part of that can be attributed to missing their top two goal scorers, Milan Iloski and Bruno Damiani, along with Cavan Sullivan and Danley Jean-Jacques.

But even after these last three matches, Richter to his credit as he should as any head coach does, believes in his team.

“Outside of the New England game, I don’t think that we didn’t play well. I thought the New England game that was not our best performance,” the interim head coach said to members of the press. “Like, that was our clear reflection about that. But the Nashville game, we stuck to the game plan and I thought played really good and had a really good defensive performance. In the Cincinnati game, I thought we were the better team and just couldn’t find the the final touch.”

It is important to note that the Union have suffered only one road loss since interim head coach Ryan Richter took over. As we know, momentum heading into the playoffs can make all the difference in the world.

As for the status of players heading into the final match of the season, Richter said that Milan Iloski is questionable, although he believes it is unlikely that he will play.

Outside of the Union’s leading scorer, Japhet Sery Larsen is still dealing with concussion symptoms and will be unavailable.

Other than that, the Union should have a full squad available, barring any last-minute changes.

Their opponent, Toronto FC, heads into the match with nothing but pride to play for, as head coach Robin Fraser’s squad will finish below the playoff line for the second consecutive season since he took over last January.

There is certainly talent on this Toronto squad, and if Philadelphia does not show up ready to play, it could make for a long afternoon in Chester.

Hungarian Dániel Sallói leads the squad with nine goals and seven assists on the year, while U.S. Soccer forward Josh Sargent has scored nine goals since arriving from Norwich City during the winter transfer window.

Fraser’s squad also features other talented players, such as Theo Corbeanu and Đorđe Mihailović, whom the Union will need to keep an eye on throughout the match.

The Toronto squad also features defender Jackson Gilman, a Schwenksville native who came through the Union Academy and Union II before playing for University of Pittsburgh. He was drafted by Toronto ahead of this season and signed to their second team before making the jump to the first team [check out our interview with him]. He began his season at Subaru Park against Union II and if he plays, will finish it at Subaru Park against the Union.

“They have quality players and they have some really good pros in their team,” Richter said. “So, I can’t imagine that that’s what the approach would be from the individuals or from the coaching staff, guys that are really experienced in this league.”

“It’s never that you’re not playing for anything. You know, it’s guys individually. Some may be playing for contracts. The next team, the option that is on the line of maybe being picked up, maybe not for coaches, trying to end the season in a positive way and you don’t know exactly what team they’re going to play with.”

With several clubs in both the Eastern and Western Conferences fighting for playoff positioning, along with teams in the West battling to secure postseason berths, it should make for an exciting and interesting Decision Day in Major League Soccer as the league builds toward the Audi 2026 MLS Cup Playoffs.

Main article photo courtesy of the Philadelphia Union