Charlotte FC ends season frustrated with playoff format, and a big hole to fill

Charlotte FC’s season ended on Nov. 7 with a 3-1 home loss to New York City FC in a first-round playoff series that felt winnable.

Days later, head coach Dean Smith and his veterans held exit interviews that exposed harsh truths: frustration with MLS playoffs, urgent roster needs and the gap between regular season dominance and postseason failure.

Charlotte posted 19 wins, 59 points, 55 goals and had a nine-game win streak that tied for the longest in MLS history. But none of that mattered in the playoffs.

Below are five themes from those exit interviews.

Smith wants MLS to scrap three-game format

Smith pulled no punches about the playoff structure, calling it “a bit of a lottery” and demanding the league adopt European-style home-and-away aggregate scoring.

“My mates are phoning me and saying, good luck in the next round. I’m like, what else? Yeah, but you’ve won on penalties in New York. Yeah, but it doesn’t work like that over here,” Smith said. “It’s just a weird format.”

Smith’s solution: “Just two legs, please, home and away, and the aggregate score goes through, or you take it to penalties. The team that finishes higher has the home advantage.”

The coach’s deeper frustration centers on valuing consistency over knockout drama. Charlotte finished seventh in Supporters’ Shield standings and fourth in the Eastern Conference.

“My mind is still to win the Supporters’ Shield rather than the MLS Cup,” Smith said. “That’s just from my upbringing because it’s 34 games and in 34 games I think you show a level of consistency, whereas when you go into Cup football, whether it be the U.S. Open Cup, Leagues Cup, MLS playoffs, it can become a bit of a lottery.”

Smith’s disdain extends to scheduling decisions that hurt competitive balance and fan engagement.

“You can’t go and play 10 out of 12 games on the road and then eight out of 10 games at home. That doesn’t make it a competitive league,” Smith said. “And it starves supporters of the need to be at a game.”

Replacing Malanda creates urgent priority

Adilson Malanda’s departure to Middlesbrough creates Charlotte’s most glaring roster hole. The 23-year-old French center back made 100 MLS regular-season starts across four seasons.

“Obviously, you just realize it is the last time, the last moment that you spend on this field with this person around you, the teammates, the coaches, staff, the fans,” Malanda said in his final press conference. “You feel the energy for the last time, so you try to just enjoy it, and of course, it can get emotional.”

Left back Harry Toffolo offered the simplest assessment: “He’s the complete center back. He’s got everything. We talk about a hole now there, but it’s an opportunity for someone else to come in and create a legacy like he did.”

Smith knows exactly what profile he needs but acknowledged finding it won’t be simple.

“One of the things that probably disappointed me or has over the last two years was, I don’t think we’ve had enough players who get on the end of balls,” Smith said. “There’s been some good deliveries, especially from Pep Biel, going into the penalty box. I think a center back should be scoring five or six goals a season.”

Charlotte relied heavily on Wilfried Zaha and Biel for production in 2025.

“We’ve ended up relying on Pep and Wilf for 42 of our goal involvements this year,” Smith said. “That burden has to be shared a little bit more.”

Westwood shows no signs of slowing

Captain Ashley Westwood started 32 regular-season matches despite battling back issues. The 35-year-old English midfielder refuses to slow down.

“I feel great,” Westwood said. “I’ve had a slight back issue, so that’s not been ideal. I’ve been looking after that the past few weeks. But no, I feel good.”

His offseason plans mirror his in-season discipline: one week off, then back to work.

“I’ll have a week off and ...I’ll be back in the building, running on the treadmill, keeping fit because if I stop, I won’t get going again. So that’s the stage I’m at,” Westwood said. “I’ll have a week off and try and come back and beat Brant Bronico in the fitness test.

“The past 10 years that I’ve been in the game, that’s changed. People come back even fitter than where they left,” Westwood said. “So that’s one thing I’ve done. It’s helped my career.”

Bronico extension secures emotional core

Brandt Bronico’s two-year extension through 2027 locked up Charlotte’s longest-tenured player. The 30-year-old UNC Charlotte alum has appeared in 122 MLS regular-season matches since arriving in December 2020.

“To say it’s like a continued dream come true, I think is kind of underestimating it a little bit,” Bronico said. “Like, it’s greater than everything I’ve ever thought I could do. I mean, when I was growing up, Charlotte didn’t even have an MLS team.”

Bronico’s versatility makes him invaluable. His missed chance against NYCFC haunted him, but his response reveals why Smith values him.

“I definitely lost some sleep over it the past couple of days, but at the same time, you can’t really change the past,” Bronico said. “Some people use those moments and it makes them fall, or some people use those moments and it gives them fuel. And I always have chosen the latter.”

Right back Nathan Byrne echoed similar sentiments about the playoff loss: “I’m still really, really disappointed with how it ended. Before I leave this club, I really, really want to win a trophy.”

Calendar change brings optimism

Smith enthusiastically endorsed MLS’s 2027 move to a European calendar, seeing it as essential for global credibility.

The coach noted that he has never watched an MLS final because it conflicts with Premier League matches. Moving the playoffs to May changes that dynamic entirely.

“I think if we want to be a competitive league with the top leagues in the world, then we had to move the calendar to compete with them,” Smith said. “Not only in the transfer market, but also be playing the same time.”

This story was originally published November 20, 2025 at 5:30 AM with the headline "Charlotte FC ends season frustrated with playoff format, and a big hole to fill."