Major League Soccer is laying claim to the Fourth of July, with the 2018 World Cup taken two days off before the quarterfinal round.
Beginning with Tuesday’s 9 p.m. ET match-up between red-hot Adama Diomande’s LAFC and Houston, the league has a half-dozen midweek matches for your entertainment.
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Here’s what to watch:
LAFC vs. Houston Dynamo -- 9 p.m. ET Tuesday
The first ever match-up between these sides has a lot of firepower, none more than ex-Hull City man Diomande. The 28-year-old Norwegian has an almost absurd seven goals in his first five matches, and LA has three-straight wins. The Dynamo can climb back into the West’s Top Six with a win.
Minnesota United vs. Toronto FC -- 7 p.m. ET Wednesday
Both teams have watched their playoff hopes get slimmer and slimmer, and both have been awful on the road. The good news for the Loons is that they are Wednesday’s hosts.
FC Dallas vs. Atlanta United -- 8 p.m. ET Wednesday
The home side has lost just once since an April 29 setback, while Atlanta has fallen just three times this season. Dallas is one of just five teams unbeaten at home this season -- one of whom, DC United, has played just twice in their home city -- but the Five Stripes have bucked the trend of MLS teams struggling on the road, falling just once on eight away days.
Colorado Rapids vs. Seattle Sounders -- 9 p.m. ET Wednesday
Once holders of a season left for dead, Anthony Hudson’s Rapids have taken seven points from their last three matches and can move to within a win of the Top Six with a win and help on the out-of-town scoreboard.
Real Salt Lake vs. Sporting KC -- 10 p.m. ET Wednesday
Sporting lost for the first time since April 28 at the weekend, and stays on the road in a bid to bounce back against Mike Petke’s stubborn Rio Tinto bunch.
LA Galaxy vs. DC United -- 10 p.m. ET Wednesday
Wayne Rooney won’t face off against former Manchester United teammate Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and the later is playing some fine football. Zlatan has six goals in his last four matches, finding form on the other side of the ocean from his Swedish World Cup compatriots.