Portland vs Atlanta — MLS 2026
Portland: 2 yellow cards, 0 red cards
Atlanta: 2 yellow cards, 0 red cards
Pre-match analysis, published Sep 17, 2026, 11:10 PM UTC before kickoff and not revised after the result. Live standings and season stats are on the MLS page.
Standings & Form · MLS 2026
Pre-match · Sep 17, 2026
Portland sit 15th with 32 points, but their home form is far stronger than their overall record: 7 wins and 3 losses at home versus just 2 wins and 8 losses away. Atlanta are 28th with 23 points and have struggled on the road, winning only 2 of 13 away matches. The table gap flatters Portland slightly, but their home advantage is real and significant.
Portland
AtlantaScoring Profile
Pre-match · Sep 17, 2026
Attack
Portland's home attack is clearly the stronger of the two, averaging 2.4 goals per home match compared to Atlanta's 0.9 away. Portland's recent home form is even better, with 2.8 goals per match in their last 5 at home. Atlanta's away attack is weak, but they have scored in 4 of their last 5 away matches.
Goals Scored · Season
Failed to Score · Season
Attacking Share · Season
Goals Scored · Last 5
Failed to Score · Last 5
Defence
Portland concede 1.8 goals per home match, while Atlanta concede 1.7 away, so both defenses are similarly leaky. Portland have no clean sheets in their last 6 home matches, and Atlanta have only 1 clean sheet in their last 6 away. Neither side is likely to keep a clean sheet.
Goals Conceded · Season
Clean Sheets · Season
Goals Conceded · Last 5
Goals & Timing
Pre-match · Sep 17, 2026
Portland are most dangerous in the final 15 minutes, scoring 26% of their goals between minutes 76-90, but they also concede 23% of their goals in that same window. Atlanta are equally dangerous in the 31-45 and 76-90 windows, scoring 24% in each, and they concede 26% of their goals in the final 15 minutes. Expect late action, especially from Portland.
Goal Lines · Season 2026
Pre-match · Sep 17, 2026
Portland's home matches are extremely high-scoring, with 92% going over 2.5 goals and 62% over 3.5. Atlanta's away matches are less open, with 46% over 2.5 and 31% over 3.5. Portland have failed to score in 0% of home matches, while Atlanta have failed to score in 46% of away matches, making Portland the far more reliable attacking side.
Betting Angles
Our Forecast · Total goals 3.25
We give the over 54%; the bookmaker gives it 47%.
The total goals market sets the line at 3.25, with the market pricing the over at 47% and the under at 53%. Our model puts the over at 54%, giving us an edge of about 7 percentage points toward the over. Our read sits 7 points above the market's on the over 3.25 line.
Model price from season goal record · bookmaker figure implied from its odds · statistical insight only · not advice
Statistical insight only · not advice
Match Trends · Data-provider insights
Draw seems to be a common result for Atlanta lately. They have drawn 2 out of their last 3 MLS matches.
In the last 3 matches of the MLS, Portland conceded on average 2.6 goals per match while Atlanta conceded on average 1.6 goals per match.
In their last 5 MLS matches, Portland have received an average of 1.4 cards per match, while Atlanta have averaged 1.8 cards.
In their last 5 MLS matches, Portland have received an average of 0.4 cards in the first half per match, while Atlanta have averaged 0.4 cards.
In their last 5 MLS matches, Portland have been awarded an average of 4.8 corners per match, while Atlanta have averaged 6 corners.
The chances of seeing a goal from Atlanta in the first half are slim. They have only averaged 0.4 goals before halftime in the MLS matches this season.
Chances are good to see a goal from Portland within the first half. They have averaged 0.8 goals before halftime in the MLS this season.
Standings & Form · MLS 2026
Pre-match · Sep 17, 2026
Portland sit 15th with 32 points, but their home form is far stronger than their overall record: 7 wins and 3 losses at home versus just 2 wins and 8 losses away. Atlanta are 28th with 23 points and have struggled on the road, winning only 2 of 13 away matches. The table gap flatters Portland slightly, but their home advantage is real and significant.
PortlandAtlantaHead-to-Head · LAST 6 MEETINGS
Atlanta have dominated recent meetings, winning 3 of the last 6 and losing only 1, with an average of 2.83 total goals per match. The most recent meeting was a 5-1 Atlanta win in March 2023. This history suggests Atlanta are comfortable against Portland, though the venue has not been kind to them historically.
Scoring Profile
Pre-match · Sep 17, 2026
Attack
Portland's home attack is clearly the stronger of the two, averaging 2.4 goals per home match compared to Atlanta's 0.9 away. Portland's recent home form is even better, with 2.8 goals per match in their last 5 at home. Atlanta's away attack is weak, but they have scored in 4 of their last 5 away matches.
Goals Scored · Season
Failed to Score · Season
Attacking Share · Season
Goals Scored · Last 5
Failed to Score · Last 5
Defence
Portland concede 1.8 goals per home match, while Atlanta concede 1.7 away, so both defenses are similarly leaky. Portland have no clean sheets in their last 6 home matches, and Atlanta have only 1 clean sheet in their last 6 away. Neither side is likely to keep a clean sheet.
Goals Conceded · Season
Clean Sheets · Season
Goals Conceded · Last 5
Goals & Timing
Pre-match · Sep 17, 2026
Portland are most dangerous in the final 15 minutes, scoring 26% of their goals between minutes 76-90, but they also concede 23% of their goals in that same window. Atlanta are equally dangerous in the 31-45 and 76-90 windows, scoring 24% in each, and they concede 26% of their goals in the final 15 minutes. Expect late action, especially from Portland.
Goal Lines · Season 2026
Pre-match · Sep 17, 2026
Portland's home matches are extremely high-scoring, with 92% going over 2.5 goals and 62% over 3.5. Atlanta's away matches are less open, with 46% over 2.5 and 31% over 3.5. Portland have failed to score in 0% of home matches, while Atlanta have failed to score in 46% of away matches, making Portland the far more reliable attacking side.
Betting Angles
Our Forecast · Total goals 3.25
We give the over 54%; the bookmaker gives it 47%.
The total goals market sets the line at 3.25, with the market pricing the over at 47% and the under at 53%. Our model puts the over at 54%, giving us an edge of about 7 percentage points toward the over. Our read sits 7 points above the market's on the over 3.25 line.
Model price from season goal record · bookmaker figure implied from its odds · statistical insight only · not advice
Statistical insight only · not advice
Match Trends · Data-provider insights
Draw seems to be a common result for Atlanta lately. They have drawn 2 out of their last 3 MLS matches.
In the last 3 matches of the MLS, Portland conceded on average 2.6 goals per match while Atlanta conceded on average 1.6 goals per match.
In their last 5 MLS matches, Portland have received an average of 1.4 cards per match, while Atlanta have averaged 1.8 cards.
In their last 5 MLS matches, Portland have received an average of 0.4 cards in the first half per match, while Atlanta have averaged 0.4 cards.
In their last 5 MLS matches, Portland have been awarded an average of 4.8 corners per match, while Atlanta have averaged 6 corners.
The chances of seeing a goal from Atlanta in the first half are slim. They have only averaged 0.4 goals before halftime in the MLS matches this season.
Chances are good to see a goal from Portland within the first half. They have averaged 0.8 goals before halftime in the MLS this season.
About The Match
Portland's home form is the strongest signal in this fixture: they average 2.4 goals per home match while Atlanta manage just 0.9 away, and 92% of Portland's home games have gone over 2.5 goals. Atlanta's away record is poor, with only 1 win in their last 6 on the road, but they are unbeaten in their last 3 away matches and have a strong head-to-head edge, winning 3 of the last 6 meetings. The key uncertainty is whether Portland's leaky defense, which concedes 1.8 goals per home game, can hold against an Atlanta side that scores 62% of its goals in the second half. Portland's 2.4 home goals per match versus Atlanta's 0.9 away is the clearest attacking gap in this fixture.