Argentina forward, Lionel Messi has won his second consecutive Major League Soccer (MLS) Golden Boot award after Inter Miami played out a 3-3 draw against Charlotte FC on the final day of the regular season on Saturday.
The 2025 award winner finished the campaign with 26 goals, becoming the first player in MLS history to claim the Golden Boot in consecutive seasons.
Messi did not score against Charlotte but provided two assists from corner kicks as Miami secured second place in the Eastern Conference.
Dallas forward Petar Musa finished second in the scoring chart with 22 goals after failing to find the net in his side’s 3-1 victory over Colorado.
Messi’s contribution helped Inter Miami secure home advantage for the opening two rounds of the playoffs.
Inter Miami raced into a 3-0 lead before Charlotte mounted a comeback.
Ian Fray opened the scoring from Messi’s 14th-minute corner, while Luis Suarez doubled the advantage with a header from another corner delivered by the Argentine in the 33rd minute.
Rodrigo De Paul added the third before the break.
Charlotte responded after half-time through Liel Abada, who scored twice to bring the visitors level before Rodolfo Aloko struck in the 90th minute to complete the comeback.
Messi hit the post in stoppage time, while Aloko narrowly missed a late winner.
Meanwhile, Nashville set a new MLS record for points in a regular season after defeating Cincinnati 2-0 to finish with 77 points.
The club recorded 23 wins, three defeats and eight draws, surpassing the previous record of 74 points set by Inter Miami in 2024.
Miami ended the Eastern Conference campaign in second place with 60 points, while New England finished third with 58 points following a 1-0 defeat to Orlando.
Messi’s side will face Columbus in the opening round of the playoffs, while Nashville will meet the winner of the wild-card clash between Orlando and Cincinnati.
In the Western Conference, Vancouver defeated Montreal 2-0 to finish second overall, while Seattle secured a playoff berth with a 2-1 victory over Los Angeles FC.
Albert Rusnak scored in the opening minute and assisted Sebastian Gomez’s goal before Eddie Segura pulled one back for LAFC in the 82nd minute.
Portland also secured qualification with a 2-0 win over Austin, while Real Salt Lake defeated the Los Angeles Galaxy 2-1 to claim a postseason spot. Colorado missed out after losing to Dallas.
The Western Conference playoff fixtures will see Vancouver face the winner of the Seattle-Real Salt Lake wild-card tie, Dallas take on Portland, LAFC meet St. Louis and Houston play San Jose.
AFP
