A championship season seems to be unfolding in Nashville.
Don't act surprised.
The talent-poor Tennessee Titans seem headed toward another top draft pick next spring. The transitory Nashville Predators will try to climb out of the NHL's "mushy middle" this season.
But it's Nashville SC that's headed for a banner year, putting together an incredible 2026 MLS season.
It might even be one of the best teams in league history when it’s all over.
After another dominant performance on Aug. 29 at Geodis Park, this time a 4-0 victory over FC Cincinnati, Nashville (16-4-2) continues to elevate its standard of play in MLS. It remains the front-runners for the Supporters' Shield, the trophy given to the top regular-season team every year.
"For us, we are constantly
going to try to get better," Nashville coach B.J. Callaghan said after the win. "Tonight, some of the difficult challenges that Cincinnati gave to us, we were able to learn and manage those situations."
Just consider what Nashville has done this season. With 65% of the season complete, it leads the MLS with 52 points, nine points clear of second-place Vancouver. It's on pace for 80 points (the MLS record is 74) and 24 wins (which would tie the MLS record). It's undefeated at home (11-1-0) and its only two road losses were one-goal defeats.
The key to Nashville's dominance? Elite play in every phase of the game.
On defense, Nashville has allowed just 17 goals in league play. With 12 games to play, it has a chance to break or tie the MLS record for fewest goals allowed in a 34-game season (26, set by the Philadelphia Union in 2022). Goalkeeper Brian Schwake has 10 clean sheets, bolstered by physical center backs Max Woledzi and Jeisson Palacios.
"We take a lot of pride in (our defense)," Schwake said after the Cincinnati win. "It's a team effort and it's a defensive unit effort. You saw that tonight, with (Woledzi) making big blocks. Guys running back and making big plays. As a team, we pride ourselves on being difficult to score against."
Then there's Nashville's offense, an absolute nightmare for opponents. Sam Surridge and Hany Mukhtar finish most of the goals. Cristian Espinoza and Andy Najar create attacking space from the outside. Depth players like Bryan Acosta, Shakur Mohammed and Ahmed Qasem add late-game speed and skill.
"That's part of their job description, to create goal-scoring chances, score goals, set up goals," Callaghan said. "They're given that opportunity to do that because they've got guys behind them that are also doing their job in their roles."
Unlike the NFL and NHL, there are multiple trophies to win each season in MLS. In addition to the Supporters' Shield, there's the Leagues Cup, the MLS Cup and the Open Cup, which Nashville won in 2025.
Nashville was already knocked out of the Leagues Cup and Open Cup for 2026, but the Supporters' Shield and MLS Cup — arguably the two most important trophies in U.S. pro soccer — are very much in play if it keeps up its current pace.
Nashville's schedule is favorable, too. Nine of its final 12 games are against teams outside of the top 10, with eight games against the bottom half of the league.
For now, Callaghan is not looking to put too high an expectation on his team, despite its recent form.
"We're more concerned about turning the page every day," he said. "Coming to work and not putting limitations on what we can achieve."
Alex Daugherty is the Predators beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Alex at jdaugherty@gannett.com, follow him on X at@alexdaugherty1 or check out our Predators exclusive Instagram page @tennessean_preds.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Why Nashville SC seems poised to win major soccer trophy, break MLS records
