Lionel Messi has become the first player to win the Major League Soccer (MLS) Golden Boot in consecutive seasons after finishing the regular campaign with 26 goals, as Inter Miami secured second place in the Eastern Conference following a 3–3 draw against Charlotte.
The Argentine forward achieved the milestone on Saturday, despite failing to score in Miami’s final regular-season fixture at Nu Stadium.
Messi finished four goals ahead of FC Dallas forward Petar Musa, who also failed to find the net in his side’s 3–1 victory over Colorado.
Although he did not score, Messi provided assists from two corner kicks that helped Inter Miami establish a commanding lead.
Miami opened the scoring in the 14th minute after Charlotte’s Luca de la Torre failed to clear Messi’s corner, allowing Ian Fray to score.
The Argentine delivered another dangerous corner in the 33rd minute, which Luis Suárez converted with a header at the near post to double Miami’s advantage.
Rodrigo De Paul added a third goal before half-time to put the defending champions firmly in control.
However, Charlotte mounted an impressive comeback in the second half, with Liel Abada scoring twice, first early after the restart and again in the 55th minute.
Rodolfo Aloko completed the comeback in the 90th minute, reacting quickest after a shot from Smalls rebounded off the post.
Messi came close to restoring Miami’s lead during stoppage time but struck the post, while Aloko narrowly missed a late winner with a powerful effort that hit the side netting.
The draw left Inter Miami with 60 points, securing second place in the Eastern Conference and home advantage for the opening two rounds of the playoffs.
New England had an opportunity to overtake Miami but suffered a 1–0 defeat against Orlando, finishing third with 58 points.
Nashville SC finished top of the Eastern Conference after defeating Cincinnati 2–0, setting a new MLS regular-season points record with 77 points.
The club recorded 23 victories, eight draws and three defeats, surpassing Inter Miami’s previous record of 74 points established in 2024.
Inter Miami will begin their playoff campaign against Columbus, who secured seventh place after beating Chicago 4–3 and avoiding the wild-card round.
New England will face Philadelphia, Charlotte will take on Chicago, while Nashville will meet the winner of the wild-card encounter between Orlando and Cincinnati.
Meanwhile, Vancouver Whitecaps defeated Montreal 2–0 to finish second overall and secure home advantage should they meet Inter Miami again in a rematch of last season’s MLS Cup final.
The final day of the regular season also produced an intense battle for the remaining three Western Conference playoff positions, with six teams still competing for qualification.
Portland, Colorado and Los Angeles Galaxy all had opportunities to qualify with victories, but only Portland succeeded, beating Austin 2–0.
Real Salt Lake secured another qualification spot with a 2–1 victory over LA Galaxy, while Colorado’s defeat against Dallas further strengthened their position.
Seattle claimed the final available spot after defeating Los Angeles FC 2–1 at home.
Albert Rusnák opened the scoring in the first minute before setting up Sebastián Gómez for Seattle’s second goal in the 31st minute.
Eddie Segura pulled one back for LAFC in the 82nd minute, but Seattle held on to secure qualification.
Minnesota United also defeated San Jose 3–1 but, like LA Galaxy, finished one point behind Real Salt Lake.
In the Western Conference playoffs, Vancouver will face the winner of the wild-card match between Seattle and Real Salt Lake.
Dallas will take on Portland, Los Angeles FC will meet St. Louis, while Houston will face San Jose.
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