Lionel Messi added yet another feather to his cap as he clinched the Major League Soccer (MLS) Golden Boot award following Inter Miami’s 5-2 win over Nashville.
Messi netted 29 goals in the league, including a hat-trick on the last gameweek in the game against Nashville to become the league’s top scorer during his second full season with the Herons.
Messi also added 19 assists as he beat out LAFC’s Denis Bouanga (24 goals) and Nashville SC’s Sam Surridge (24 goals). He is Miami’s first-ever Golden Boot winner and the first Argentine to take home the award since Valentín “Taty” Castellanos did so with New York City FC in 2021.
Now, Messi looks poised to become the league’s first-ever back-to-back Landon Donovan MLS MVP winner, following a historic 2024 campaign that helped Miami claim that year’s Supporters’ Shield in record-breaking fashion.
Messi and Miami are the Eastern Conference No. 3 seed in the Audi 2025 MLS Cup Playoffs, where they’ll face No. 6 Nashville in a Round One Best-of-3 Series. This year’s MLS Cup champion will be crowned on Dec. 6.
Published on Oct 19, 2025
