The MLS playoff series is set to expand from 10 to 12 teams in 2015 as the league plans ahead for a 24-team competition, according to Sports Illustrated.
For the past four years, 10 clubs have participated in the postseason, but with the introduction of Orlando City and New York City FC to the league next year (along with the departure of Chivas USA) 20 sides will now vie for a chance at winning the MLS Cup.
The league will then expand to a 22-team competition in 2017 when Atlanta and Los Angeles FC join, and then to 24 in 2019-2020, bringing the clubs-to-playoff-spots ratio to 50 percent -- in line with the likes of the NBA and NHL (53.3 percent).
Under the new system, the third-place team in each conference will host the sixth seed in one single-elimination game while No. 4 hosts No. 5 in the other. The four conference semifinalists will then be reseeded to ensure the first-place finisher faces off against the lowest-ranked knockout-round survivor. The bracket will look like the one used in the NFL since 1990.
It's expected that the Eastern and Western conference semifinals and finals will remain as two-game series featuring the away-goals tiebreaker, while the MLS Cup final will remain a single match.
An announcement from the MLS could be made as soon as next week.