Impact Ratings: MLS Games Hit Hard by International Duty (June 2-10 2025)
The early June international window is a weird one for MLS.
Only four MLS games are being played, and not many international squads are playing friendlies. The most significant disruption was when Canada played the Canadian Shield Tournament and the United States played friendlies against Turkey and Switzerland.
After this short window, we’re back to MLS as usual for four days before the CONCACAF Gold Cup and Club World Cup start on June 14th. Be prepared for a much longer analysis of those absences closer to! Canada and the United States are expected to go deep into the tournament, causing huge impacts on various MLS teams.
If you’re curious about how these numbers are put together, I detail them at the bottom of the post.
| June 7 | DC United | Chicago Fire FC |
|---|---|---|
| # of Players | 0 | 0 |
| # of Minutes | 0 | 0 |
| % of Team Minutes | 0% | 0% |
| Weighted Average FotMob Rating | 0 | 0 |
| Match Impact | 0 | 0 |
Well, not much to talk about here. No call-ups for either team!
The March window only had a small impact on both teams. Only Brian Gutiérrez of the Chicago Fire was previously called to the United States but not invited for this window’s friendlies.
| June 8 | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Seattle Sounders FC |
|---|---|---|
| # of Players | 6 | 0 |
| # of Minutes | 3,713 | 0 |
| % of Team Minutes | 26.79% | 0% |
| Weighted Average FotMob Rating | 7.16 | 0 |
| Match Impact | 38 | 0 |
This is looking like a very lopsided Cascadia Cup clash.
Going into this match, the Vancouver Whitecaps are riding high—a CCC Final on June 1st, top of the Supporters Shield, and top of the Cascadia Cup standings. Their only league loss this season was against the Chicago Fire during the last international break. Pedro Vite and Andres Cubas aren’t off for international duty, which may help the Whitecaps, but being down five starters and a sub is still going to hurt.
Seattle has tied its only Cascadia Cup clash so far, a 1-1 draw with Portland. It’s sitting 5th in the West, tied in points with Portland. Seattle is going to be fighting hard for some points in this one.
| June 8 | Portland Timbers | St. Louis City |
|---|---|---|
| # of Players | 2 | 0 |
| # of Minutes | 1,776 | 0 |
| % of Team Minutes | 11.96% | 0% |
| Weighted Average FotMob Rating | 6.65 | 0 |
| Match Impact | 16 | 0 |
Portland missing two starters will be giving St. Louis some hope they can start turning their season around.
Timbers Goalkeeper Crapeau has had a rough start to the season but has improved in the last few matches.
Finn Surman has started 14 games this season and has become an essential part of the Timbers’ defense.
| June 7 | Colorado Rapids | Austin FC |
|---|---|---|
| # of Players | 1 | 0 |
| # of Minutes | 989 | 0 |
| % of Team Minutes | 6.66% | 0% |
| Weighted Average FotMob Rating | 7.09 | 0 |
| Match Impact | 9 | 0 |
There is only one call-up for the Rapids, and it’s Zack Steffen, who was injured on May 16. It remains to be seen if he is withdrawn from the United States squad.
How It’s Analyzed
Percent of Team Minutes
For an 11-man team, over four matches of 90 minutes, what percentage of the players who played those minutes are unavailable? This is the quickest way to see what impact these absences will have. If you’re missing 25%+ of the minutes played so far this season, it will significantly impact your team this week.
Weighted Average FotMob Rating
With 14-15 games into the 2025 MLS season we have a solid sample size, showing the impact each player has had to their team.
I’ve weighted these averages based on a player’s number of minutes. A player who has only had a few minutes on the pitch shouldn’t impact them in the same way.
Match Impact Score
This was the end number I was trying to reach—a clean, simple number that shows how much impact these absences will have on a team. It is based mainly on the percentage of team minutes missing, with some effect from the weighted average FotMob Rating. If you have any suggestions on making this metric more enjoyable, please let me know in the comments!
((Weighted Average FotMob Rating * Percent of Team Minutes) / 5 ) * 100