Sports
Nashville SC clinches top MLS regular-season finish and East’s No. 1 playoff seed
A 2-0 win over CF Montreal gave Nashville SC its first Supporters’ Shield and secured home-field advantage through the Eastern Conference playoffs. Sam Surridge and Hany Mukhtar scored as Nashville extended its unbeaten run to seven games.
Nashville SC captured its first Supporters’ Shield on Saturday, beating CF Montreal 2-0 on the road to clinch Major League Soccer’s best regular-season record and the Eastern Conference’s top playoff seed.
Sam Surridge opened the scoring in the 52nd minute. After Reed Baker-Whiting sent in a cross from the left, Montreal goalkeeper Samsy Keita stopped Surridge’s header, but the Nashville forward scored on the rebound. Hany Mukhtar doubled the lead in the 76th minute, intercepting a misplayed pass in Montreal’s defensive third before beating Keita one-on-one.
Goalkeeper Brian Schwake made five saves for Nashville, which improved to 21-3-7 and 70 points. The club’s unbeaten streak now stands at seven games. Schwake leads MLS with 14 shutouts this season.
The Shield recognizes the league’s top team over the regular season. Nashville’s first-place finish gives it home-field advantage at GEODIS Park throughout the playoffs; the club would also host the MLS Cup final if it advances. Nashville will begin the postseason against the winner of the Eastern Conference wild-card game between the eighth- and ninth-seeded teams. The club also qualified for the 2027 Concacaf Champions Cup.
With three regular-season matches left, Nashville is four points short of the MLS single-season points record of 74, set by Inter Miami in 2024. The Shield is the club’s second trophy in two seasons, following its 2025 U.S. Open Cup title.
Montreal fell to 6-18-7. Keita, 17, made his MLS debut and became the youngest player to start a match in the franchise’s history; he made three saves.