The 2017 MLS season hasn't even started yet, but FC Dallas and the Vancouver Whitecaps have made history.
Dallas advanced to the 2016-17 CONCACAF Champions League semifinal round on Wednesday, despite losing to Panamanian side Arabe Unido 2-1 to win the quarterfinal series 5-2 on aggregate. It is FC Dallas' first time in the semifinal round of the CCL.
The road won't get any easier for them, either, as they will face Liga MX side Pachuca in the semis, with the first leg coming later this month in Dallas, and the return fixture set for the beginning of April in Mexico. Tickets for the FC Dallas home leg are on sale now, and the exact date for both legs will be announced on Friday.
Vancouver, meanwhile, booked their ticket on Thursday after defeating the New York Red Bulls 2-0 at BC Place, to win their series 3-1 on aggregate. It is also the Whitecaps' first time in the CCL semifinal. They will play another Liga MX side, Tigres UANL, in their semifinal series, with the second leg taking place in Vancouver. Tickets for that game are now on sale.
FC Dallas are the sixth MLS team and Vancouver the seventh to reach the CONCACAF Champions League semifinals in the current tournament format, following Real Salt Lake (2011), Toronto FC (2012), LA Galaxy (2013), Seattle Sounders (2013), and the Montreal Impact (2015).
This will be the first time since the 2012-13 CCL that two MLS teams have made the final four of the tournament.
No MLS team has ever won the Champions League, with Mexican teams holding dominion over the roll of honor since the tournament was rebranded in 2008. Two teams have reached the finals since then – Real Salt Lake narrowly lost to Monterrey in the 2010-11 final, while the Montreal Impact fell to Club América in the 2014-15 final. D.C. United (1998) and the LA Galaxy (2000) both won the previous iteration of the tournament, the CONCACAF Champions Cup.
Montreal memorably advanced against Pachuca in the quarterfinals in 2015, drawing 3-3 on aggregate and advancing courtesy of the away goals rule on their run to the final that year. Prior to that, Pachuca last participated in the Champions League in 2009-10, when they won the tournament, finishing ahead of the Houston Dynamo in the group stage on their way to the title.
Tigres last played in the CCL in the previous tournament, when they reached the final but fell to fellow Mexican side Club America. They defeated Real Salt Lake in the quarterfinal on their run, but lost in the 2012-13 CCL quarterfinals to the Seattle Sounders.
