Match Preview: Atlanta United kicks off Leagues Cup at home against D.C. United

First Touches

• Atlanta United will wear the 17s' kit | Learn the story
• If Atlanta United makes it out of the group stage, there's a chance the club could host a knockout game at Bobby Dodd Stadium. Here's what needs to happen.
• It's a bit of a later start with kickoff scheduled for 8:00 p.m. ET. And it's on FRIDAY. But whether it's Friday or Saturday or Wednesday, it doesn't matter to interim head coach Rob Valentino. It's matchday.
• This is the third meeting between these two clubs this season. The Eastern Conference teams have met twice in MLS, splitting results with Atlanta United winning one and D.C. winning one.
• Who's in and who's out against D.C. United? View the Availability Report presented by Piedmont

Match Details

• Date: Friday, July 26
• Kickoff time: 8:00 p.m. ET
• Location: Mercedes-Benz Stadium
• Tickets: View tickets

Going to the match? Check out our detailed timeline and things to do before kickoff.

How to watch, listen and live stream Atlanta United vs. D.C. United in Leagues Cup

• TV: Watch for FREE on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV
• Listen: Local radio 92.9 The Game and La Mejor
• Live stream: Watch on MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app or visit https://tv.apple.com/.
• Follow along: Follow the match with realtime stats and live play-by-play on our Matchday Hub page.

Click here to watch the video to learn how to sign up for MLS Season Pass

What is Leagues Cup?

Leagues Cup is an annual, World-Cup style tournament featuring all of the clubs in MLS and Liga MX. This year's competition runs July 26-August 25.

Every team will play two group stage matches. Atlanta United was drawn into group East 7 along with D.C. United (MLS) and Santos Laguna (Liga MX). Both matches will be played at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The top two teams from the group, as determined by points, will move on to the single-elmination knockout stage.

What happens in Leagues Cup when there's a tie in regulation? It will be decided in a penalty shootout. Read more about the tournament format and rules here.

Recent Form

Both Atlanta United and D.C. United are coming off wins in MLS play. Atlanta United most recently came-from-behind to beat defending MLS Cup champions Columbus Crew 2-1 behind two header goals from Stian Gregersen. It marked the first professional brace for the Atlanta United center back, and the league rewarded him with MLS Team of the Matchday honors.

Meanwhile D.C. United has won back-to-back matches in the regular season. They beat fellow Eastern Conference club Nashville SC 2-1 and most recently edged out Minnesota United 3-2 on the road.

• Tools to the Match: How Atlanta United kicks off Leagues Cup with home win vs. D.C. United

Players To Watch

Saba Lobjanidze (Atlanta United) - No. 9 in five stripes is a workhorse. Among wingers in Major League Soccer, Lobjanidze ranks toward the top in distance, speed and sprints per 90 minutes. He also leads Atlanta United in assists on the season (7) and shares the lead for goals (6). With his two most recent assists against the Crew, Saba joined an elite group of players in club history to record at least 20 goal contributions in the first 30 matches played for Atlanta United.

Christian Benteke (D.C. United) - Benteke has been a scoring machine this year for D.C. Entering Leagues Cup, the striker is just one off the Golden Boot rate in MLS with 16 goals scored on the year. He scored a hat trick at Mercedes-Benz Stadium earlier this season, and he's coming off a brace in D.C. United's 3-2 win against Minnesota United, including the game-winner in second-haf stoppage time. Atlanta United will need to shut him out like they did at Audi Field on June 19 when the club beat D.C. United 1-0.