The Argentinian scored ۲۶ goals in regular season, topping the charts and leading Inter Miami to the MLS Cup playoffs.
Published On ۸ Nov ۲۰۲۶
Lionel Messi has become the first player to win back-to-back Golden Boot awards in Major League Soccer after leading his club Inter Miami to a second-place finish in the Eastern Conference.
MLS defending champions Miami earned a wasteful ۳-۳ draw against Charlotte on the final day of the regular season on Saturday.
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The Argentinian superstar did not score but set up the first two goals at Miami’s Nu Stadium, both from corners, to help secure home advantage for his club in the first two playoff rounds.
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 led to a comeback sealed by Rodolfo Aloko’s late strike.
Runaway overall leaders Nashville broke the all-time MLS points record for a season with a whopping ۷۷ after beating Cincinnati ۲-۰. At ۲۳-۳ with eight draws, Nashville won the East and broke the mark of ۷۴ points set by Miami in ۲۰۲۴.
Miami finished second in the East on ۶۰ points as third-place New England failed to take advantage of Inter’s draw with a surprise ۱-۰ loss at Orlando to end on ۵۸.
At Miami, Messi’s ۱۴th-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 ۳۳rd minute found Suarez wide open at the near post. The Uruguayan glanced in his header for ۲-۰.
De Paul made it three before half-time, but Abada pulled back a goal for the visitors early and bagged a second in the ۵۵th minute.
In the ۹۰th minute, Aloko bagged the equaliser, reacting 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.
Messi’s ۲۶ goals this season were enough to make him the first to successfully defend the top goal-scoring honour. Petar Musa of Dallas was second with ۲۲ goals but did not score in his club’s ۳-۱ home victory over Colorado.
The ۳۹-year-old finished with ۲۹ goals the previous season, becoming the second player in league history to score at least ۲۵ times in back-to-back years.
Messi recently retired from international football after an illustrious ۲۱-year career with the ۲۰۲۲ world champions, but recently signed a contract extension with the MLS club through ۲۰۲۸.
Inter Miami are the holders of the MLS Cup, which they won in Messi’s second season with the club in ۲۰۲۵.
Playoffs for this season’s MLS Cup begin on November ۱۹.
Messi’s men will face Columbus to begin the MLS playoffs. Other East matchups 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 ۴-۳ victory at Chicago to finish seventh and avoid the wild-card round.
