• Matchday 32: New York City FC vs Atlanta United FC
• Date and Kickoff Time: Wednesday, October 28, 7:40 pm ET
• Venue: Citi Field, Queens, NY
• Forecast: A clear, cool autumn night in Flushing, 58F/14C
• Watch: Apple TV
• Apple Broadcast Team: Mike Watts and Lori Lindsey (English); Diego Pessolano and Daniel Chapela (Spanish)
• New York City FC Radio: Glenn Crooks and Matt Lawrence (English), Roberto Abramowitz and Ariel Judas (Spanish)
• Officiating Crew: Tori Penso (referee), Meghan Mullen and Brian Dunn (assistant referees), Drew Fischer (fourth official), Geoff Gamble (VAR), Kathryn Nesbitt (assistant VAR)
• Kits: New York City will be in the real-deal All Nations Kit with the navy top, white shorts, and orange socks; Atlanta in the beige Spirit of '96 Kit
The margin for error is gone as New York City FC returns to Citi Field to face Atlanta United FC in the first of two matches in Queens this week.
If New York City earns a draw or loses to Atlanta, they can be eliminated from playoff contention with a Red Bulls win in New England. If they lose outright to Atlanta, a win for either the Red Bulls or Columbus Crew would be enough to kill NYCFC's playoff hopes with two matches left to play.
Elimination day approaches because New York City has gotten one win from its last 14 matches played, a stretch of suffering that continued last time out when they needed Jonny Shore to save them with a 99th minute equalizer in Orlando in a 2-2 draw.
Returning to Citi Field and playing in front of the home crowd should be a boost for NYCFC, but the team has struggled even on their home fields this season. They haven't won any of their five matches in Queens and are winless in their last seven at Citi Field, a streak that continued when they played LAFC to a 1-1 draw there on October 17. The overall home record this season has been rough, at 4W-5D-6L, which is among the worst records at home (tied for 27th) of any of the 30 teams in MLS.
The good news, if there is good news, is that Atlanta United enters this game in worse shape than NYCFC. They're in 14th place in the Eastern Conference and their elimination is even more imminent than New York City FC's. Atlanta is out of the playoff running if they don't get all three points in Queens, or if the Red Bulls win or draw in New England, or if the Crew win at FC Dallas.
Andrew Leigh
New York City FC H2H Record vs Atlanta
| G | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | 6 | 9 | 5 | 36 | 30 | 6 |
These two teams love a draw. Since the 2022 season, six of the nine meetings between NYCFC and Atlanta have ended in a deadlock, including the first time these teams played in 2026, a 2-2 on September 26 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Georgia.
That was a game NYCFC twice held leads in, and twice squandered, with Atlanta's equalizer from Jay Fortune helped, in part, by a failed save by backup New York City goalkeeper Tomás Romero.
