Nashville raises the MLS points record to 77. Now comes the Cup test

A 2-0 victory at FC Cincinnati on Saturday, November 7, closed Nashville’s 2026 campaign with 23 wins, three defeats and eight draws. Sam Surridge scored twice after a scoreless first hour at TQL Stadium, supplying the finishing touch to a season that brought the club its first Supporters’ Shield and the top seed in the MLS Cup playoffs.⁠22⁠44

That distinction matters. Nashville has established a new benchmark for regular-season consistency. It has not yet won MLS Cup. The record is settled; the championship still requires a separate postseason run.

The arithmetic is straightforward: Nashville’s victories delivered 69 points, its eight draws supplied the rest, and its average finished at 2.26 points per match. Compared with Miami’s record-setting 2024 side, Nashville won one more game, lost one fewer and recorded the same eight draws. That is a three-point improvement over the same number of matches—not an achievement inflated by a longer schedule.⁠22

MLS’s leading totals now read Nashville 77, Miami 74, New England 73, LAFC 72 from 2019 and the New York Red Bulls 71 from 2018. Each campaign lasted 34 games. Those figures cannot resolve every argument about teams from different seasons, but they leave no ambiguity about who collected the most points.⁠22

Cincinnati made Nashville wait. A sellout crowd of 25,513 watched the hosts keep the match goalless through the opening hour before Surridge found the first of two routes behind their defense.⁠44

In the 61st minute, Andy Nájar sent the striker through, and Surridge finished into the bottom-left corner. Nájar and Patrick Yazbek were credited with the assists. Surridge broke clear again in the 86th minute to put the result beyond Cincinnati, this time with Yazbek and Josh Bauer supplying the assists.⁠2⁠44

The brace brought Surridge to 21 league goals, alongside two assists, and gave him consecutive regular seasons with at least 20 goals. The supporting contributions also reached personal milestones: Nájar’s 10th assist matched his career high, Yazbek’s two took him to a career-best six, and Bauer’s second equaled his previous best.⁠2

The defensive work was just as necessary. Brian Schwake stopped all five Cincinnati shots on target, finishing his regular season with 16 individual shutouts. That matched Tony Meola’s MLS goalkeeper record from 2000. Nashville’s team total was 17 clean sheets, tying the league’s single-season mark—a separate achievement from Schwake’s personal tally.⁠2⁠22

Nashville managed the shutout without Jeisson Palacios, who did not dress because of a lower-body injury. Jack Maher made his first start since September 9 at Toronto and partnered Maxwell Woledzi in central defense. The reshuffle did not prevent Nashville from completing another scoreless outing for its opponent.⁠2

Surridge’s goals supplied the final flourish, but Nashville’s record was not the product of a striker carrying an otherwise ordinary side. The team scored a club-record 71 league goals while conceding 25, the lowest total in MLS in 2026. Its 17 clean sheets meant opponents failed to score in exactly half its matches.⁠2⁠22

In B. J. Callaghan’s second full season as head coach, the attack had several reliable sources. Captain Hany Mukhtar contributed 17 goals and eight assists; winger Cristian Espinoza added four goals and 15 assists. Together with Surridge, they formed a three-player Designated Player core that gave Nashville both finishing and supply.⁠22

The dominance was visible long before the final day. Nashville had 49 points after 21 matches, the best start through that stage in league history. It finished with a league-record 15 home victories and a club-record eight away wins. Its first Shield—the trophy awarded to the overall regular-season leader—came with a record 13-point winning margin.⁠22⁠2

Those numbers describe a team that repeatedly found ways to win, at home and away, while rarely giving opponents much to work with. The points record is the headline achievement, but the balance beneath it is the stronger reason to take Nashville seriously in the playoffs.

Nashville’s regular-season work has secured entry to the 2027 Concacaf Champions Cup and hosting priority throughout the MLS Cup playoffs. If it reaches the December 18 final, that match will be at its home ground, too. The advantages are substantial, even though none substitutes for winning the next series.⁠22

The first opponent could be familiar. Cincinnati finished ninth in the Eastern Conference with 46 points from 12 wins, 12 defeats and 10 draws. It must face eighth-seeded Orlando City in the Wild Card match; the winner advances to meet Nashville. The club Surridge just beat could therefore be waiting again at the first postseason hurdle.⁠44⁠22

Nashville is scheduled to open that best-of-three first-round series at GEODIS Park on Sunday, November 22. Kickoff time has not yet been announced in the club’s schedule. After 34 matches, Nashville has earned the strongest possible starting position. What remains is to turn a record regular season into an MLS Cup title.⁠2