Inter Miami‘s Lionel Messi collected a second straight MLS Golden Boot on Saturday, even as the defending champions let a 3-0 lead slip in a 3-3 draw with Charlotte on the final day of the regular season.
The Argentine superstar did not score, but his corners set up both of Miami’s first two goals at Nu Stadium and helped secure home-field advantage for the first two playoff rounds.
Messi’s 26 goals this season were enough to make him the first back-to-back MLS Golden Boot award winner. Petar Musa of Dallas was second on 22, not scoring in his club’s 3-1 home victory over Colorado.
Ian Fray, Luis Suarez and Rodrigo De Paul racked up three first-half strikes for Inter Miami before Liel Abada’s brace soon after the break sparked a comeback sealed by Rodolfo Aloko’s late strike.
Messi’s 14th-minute corner fell unexpectedly to Charlotte’s Luca de la Torre, who spooned it up for Fray to open the scoring. Another Messi corner in the 33rd minute found Suarez wide open at the near post. The Uruguayan glanced in his header for 2-0. De Paul made it three before half-time, but Abada pulled back a goal for the visitors early in the second half and bagged a second in the 55th minute.
In the 90th minute, Aloko bagged the equaliser, responding first to the ball as Smalls’s shot ricocheted off the post. A visibly frustrated Messi hit the post in stoppage time before Aloko came inches from bagging an unlikely winner with a thunderous shot into the outside netting.
MLS Golden Boot race decided as Nashville break the record
Runaway overall leaders Nashville broke the all-time MLS points record for a season with 77 after beating Cincinnati 2-0. At 23-3 with eight drawn, Nashville won the East and broke the mark of 74 points set by Miami in 2024.
Miami finished second in the East on 60 points as third-place New England failed to take advantage of Inter’s draw with a surprise 1-0 loss at Orlando to end on 58.
Messi’s men will face Columbus to begin the MLS playoffs. Other East match-ups send New England against Philadelphia, Charlotte against Chicago and top seed Nashville against the wild-card winner, Orlando or Cincinnati. Columbus took advantage of the Cincinnati loss with a 4-3 victory at Chicago to finish seventh and avoid the wild-card round.
The wider Decision Day picture
Western Conference champion Vancouver beat Canadian rivals Montreal 2-0 to finish second overall, giving the Whitecaps a home-field edge if they should face Inter Miami in a rematch of last year’s MLS Cup final.
There were six teams fighting for the last three Western Conference playoff spots on “Decision Day”, with every MLS squad on the pitch. Portland, Colorado and the Los Angeles Galaxy needed only to win to secure a playoff berth but only Portland did so, the Timbers winning 2-0 at Austin while Real Salt Lake beat the Galaxy 2-1 and Colorado fell at Dallas, which allowed Real into the post-season.
Seattle claimed the other spot with a 2-1 home win over Los Angeles FC. Albert Rusnak scored in the first minute and assisted on Sebastian Gomez’s goal in the 31st for Seattle, and Eddie Segura’s response in the 82nd minute was too little too late. Minnesota beat visiting San Jose 3-1 but joined the Galaxy a point shy of the last-in Real Salt Lake.
Opening Western Conference playoff pairings find Vancouver against the Seattle-Salt Lake wild-card winner, Dallas against Portland, LAFC against St Louis and Houston against San Jose.
Messi’s award caps another strong season in Miami. He has now won the Golden Boot in back-to-back years, the first player in MLS history to do so, and he did it while setting up goals as well as scoring them. His brace against Atlanta earlier this season was one of the highlights, and his form helped Miami seal a playoff spot well before the final day.
Frequently asked questions
How many goals did Messi score to win the MLS Golden Boot?
Messi scored 26 goals in the regular season, four more than second-placed Petar Musa of Dallas, who finished on 22.
Who do Inter Miami play in the MLS playoffs?
Inter Miami will face Columbus in their playoff opener, after finishing second in the Eastern Conference on 60 points.
Has anyone won back-to-back MLS Golden Boots before?
No. Messi is the first player in MLS history to win the Golden Boot in consecutive seasons.
What is the MLS points record?
Nashville set a new record with 77 points, beating the 74 points set by Inter Miami in 2024. Nashville finished the season with 23 wins, three defeats and eight draws.
