A New Home
Atlanta United opened up their permanent home of Mercedes Benz Stadium on Sep. 10 battling to get into the MLS Cup Playoffs. Just three weeks and seven home matches later, they had clinched a postseason birth and now control their destiny for a first round home playoff match.
To be fair, the Five Stripes’ rapid ascent up the table couldn’t be seen as much of a surprise. After all, Atlanta had already established themselves as a dominant home side, amassing a 6-2-1 record at Bobby Dodd Stadium. And the complications with the opening of the Benz created a rather unique fixture list that saw the Five Stripes playing eight of their final ten matches at their new home.