It's the international break for the MLS Cup Playoffs but there's no international break for the Hudson River Blue Podcast. Episode 13 begins with a survey of the playoff landscape in the Eastern Conference after Round One, namely that the top three seeds, including regular season record-setters Inter Miami CF and Lionel Messi, have been knocked out. Can New York City FC suddenly start dreaming of a march towards another MLS Cup appearance?

First things first, and that means a first-ever playoff Hudson River Derby, which will be played at a less-than-full Citi Field. The news that capacity will be capped due to closures of the upper levels of the stadium as it begins its process of offseason winterization spurred lots of spirited discussion between hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan. They share their thoughts on the cap on crowd size and how it's a missed opportunity to draw a big crowd to watch NYCFC play the New York Red Bulls in the rivalry's most important game to date.

Episode 13 wraps up with the beginnings of a preview of that Eastern Conference Semifinal against the Red Bulls, with some key numbers and trends called out from across the history of the rivalry game that are worth noting while anticipation continues to build for the first playoff clash between the teams.

After you've listened to this episode be sure to go read all of our latest coverage at Hudson River Blue.com, and follow us on Bluesky, Threads, or maybe even Twitter (X), if you're still into that.

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