Griezmann and Lewandowski Make Their MLS Debuts
Lionel Messi is catching his breath. Major League Soccer barely has time to blink.
With the World Cup dust still swirling after Argentina’s defeat to Spain in the final, the league has stepped straight into its next act. Messi is on a post-tournament break, but the star wattage hasn’t dimmed. Two European heavyweights, Antoine Griezmann and Robert Lewandowski, have walked into the spotlight and straight into the pressure cooker.
Griezmann hits the ground running
On Wednesday, July 22, Griezmann needed just one half of football to announce himself.
Orlando City tore through the San Jose Earthquakes in a 4-0 rout, and the 2018 World Cup winner with France put his stamp on the night three minutes after the restart. His first MLS goal arrived early in the second half, the kind of swift contribution that settles debates before they start. No easing-in period, no gentle introduction. He’s here.
Orlando’s dominance turned the game into a statement. With Messi off the stage for now, Griezmann stepped into the role of headline act without a hint of hesitation.
Lewandowski still waiting
Lewandowski’s first taste of MLS was harsher.
The Polish striker started for the Chicago Fire in his debut but went scoreless in 63 minutes during a 3-2 defeat to an Inter Miami side playing without Messi. For a forward whose career has been built on ruthless efficiency in front of goal, the blank will sting, even if the context offers some cover. New league, new teammates, new rhythm.
There’s no time for nostalgia, though. On Saturday, July 25, Lewandowski gets his next chance when Chicago heads to Yankee Stadium to face New York City FC. A tight pitch, a demanding venue, and a striker already chasing his first MLS goal. It won’t take long to find out how quickly he can adjust.
Griezmann’s next test: the league leaders
While Lewandowski looks for a breakthrough, Griezmann walks straight into a measuring-stick game.
Orlando City hosts Nashville SC, the current leaders in the Supporters’ Shield race. One explosive debut is one thing; doing it again against the pace-setters is another. Nashville’s organization and discipline will ask different questions of Orlando’s new star. If his first outing was about flair, this one is about authority.
A packed Saturday slate
The league doesn’t build gently. Saturday, July 25, is a full-bore return from the summer hiatus, with every match available on Apple TV:
- Red Bull New York vs. Charlotte FC, 6:30 p.m. ET
- Columbus Crew vs. FC Cincinnati, 7:15 p.m. ET
- D.C. United vs. Toronto FC, 7:30 p.m. ET
- CF Montréal vs. Inter Miami, 7:30 p.m. ET
- New England Revolution vs. Atlanta United, 7:30 p.m. ET
- New York City FC vs. Chicago Fire, 7:30 p.m. ET
- Orlando City SC vs. Nashville SC, 7:30 p.m. ET
- Philadelphia Union vs. Seattle Sounders, 7:30 p.m. ET
- Houston Dynamo vs. Austin FC, 8:30 p.m. ET
- Minnesota United vs. Vancouver Whitecaps, 8:30 p.m. ET
- St. Louis City SC vs. Colorado Rapids, 8:30 p.m. ET
- San Diego FC vs. FC Dallas, 9:30 p.m. ET (FS1)
- Los Angeles FC vs. Sporting Kansas City, 10:30 p.m. ET
- Portland Timbers vs. Real Salt Lake, 10:30 p.m. ET
- San Jose Earthquakes vs. LA Galaxy, 10:30 p.m. ET
The marquee names are there, but the day’s fiercest edge belongs somewhere else entirely.
“Hell is Real” returns
In Columbus, one of MLS’s most combustible rivalries reignites.
The Columbus Crew host FC Cincinnati at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field at 7:15 p.m. ET, with the “Hell is Real” derby arriving at a moment when the two clubs are moving in opposite directions.
Cincinnati comes in riding the high of a wild 4-3 win over Western Conference leaders Vancouver Whitecaps. They’re entrenched in the Eastern Conference playoff race and carrying the confidence of a team that knows it can trade punches with anyone.
Columbus, by contrast, are hurting. The 2026 campaign has been unforgiving: just four wins in 16 league matches, a record that cost Henrik Rydström his job after only 14 games. Laurent Courtois has stepped in as interim head coach, but the reset hasn’t brought instant relief. The Crew returned from the World Cup break and promptly fell 2-1 to New York City FC on July 22.
So the derby arrives not as a spectacle on the calendar, but as a crossroads. For Cincinnati, it’s a chance to deepen their grip on the conference race. For Columbus, it’s an opportunity to jolt a flat season back to life in the most emotionally charged setting they know.
Title picture: Messi’s Miami still on top
Even with Messi on hiatus, the bookmakers haven’t shifted their gaze.
BetMGM lists Inter Miami as the favorite to win the 2026 MLS championship at +333, the clearest sign that the league still runs through South Florida when its No. 10 returns. Behind them, Los Angeles FC and Vancouver Whitecaps sit at +750, Nashville SC at +800, and FC Cincinnati at +1200.
Griezmann and Lewandowski are only just unpacking their bags. The World Cup has only just finished. The league calendar is only just restarting.
Yet the stakes, from the title race to “Hell is Real,” are already crackling.
