Through 31 seasons of Major League Soccer, no one had ever won the Golden Boot two years running. On Saturday, Lionel Messi did.

The Inter Miami captain closed the regular season four goals clear of FC Dallas striker Petar Musa, who finished on 22, with Nashville’s Sam Surridge third on 21, according to MLS. He also provided 17 assists for a league-leading 43 goal contributions.

It is the second Golden Boot in two years for Messi, who won the 2025 award with 29 goals in just 28 regular-season matches.

Five tried, none managed it

Five players had won the Golden Boot twice before Messi, but all in non-consecutive years: Preki (1997, 2003), Taylor Twellman (2002, 2005), Jeff Cunningham (2006, 2009), Chris Wondolowski (2010, 2012) and Bradley Wright-Phillips (2014, 2016). The gap between first and second trophy had always been at least two seasons. Messi needed one.

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Inter Miami framed the moment in its own post on the night: “Not a repeat. A reminder. Back-to-back Golden Boot winner. Congratulations, Leo!” the club wrote after the final whistle.

39, retired from Argentina, still leading MLS

Messi turned 39 earlier in the year and stepped away from international football in October, and the goals have not thinned out. The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner is also now the favourite for a third Landon Donovan MLS Most Valuable Player award after taking the prize in both 2024 and 2025, a third would make him the first three-time MVP in league history, according to Yahoo Sports.

Columbus up next in the East

Inter Miami, the reigning MLS Cup champions, finished second in the Eastern Conference and will host seventh-seeded Columbus Crew to open a best-of-three first-round series. Messi has two years left on his Inter Miami contract.

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