The 39-year-old scored 26 times in 31 appearances, starting 29 of those matches. His latest achievement also makes him the sixth player in MLS history to finish as the league’s leading scorer in more than one season.
Messi finished comfortably ahead of his closest challengers in the Golden Boot standings. FC Dallas’ Croatian forward Petar Musa claimed second place with 22 goals, four fewer than the Argentine. Nashville SC striker Sam Surridge finished third with 21 goals.
Despite his outstanding individual campaign, Messi could not end the regular season with a goal in his final appearance. Inter Miami were held to a 3-3 draw by Charlotte FC on Saturday, surrendering a three-goal half-time advantage in a dramatic encounter.
Miami started brightly and appeared to be heading towards a comfortable victory. In the 14th minute, Ian Fray opened the scoring by converting a corner delivered by Messi. The hosts doubled their advantage in the 33rd minute when Luis Suárez finished from close range after receiving a headed pass from Germán Berterame.
Rodrigo De Paul extended Miami’s lead three minutes before half-time, producing an impressive strike from outside the penalty area to make it 3-0.
Charlotte, however, produced a spirited response after the interval. Liel Abada scored twice in the space of five minutes, finding the net in the 50th and 55th minutes to bring the visitors back into contention.
The comeback was completed in dramatic fashion in the final minute of normal time. A shot from Tyger Smalls struck the post before Rodolfo Aloko reacted quickly to the rebound and sent the ball into the net. The equaliser secured a 3-3 draw and denied Miami a winning finish to their regular-season campaign.
Despite dropping points in their final fixture, Inter Miami secured second place in the Eastern Conference with 60 points. The result of their overall campaign also guaranteed a fourth consecutive appearance in the MLS play-offs, as well as qualification for the upcoming CONCACAF Champions Cup.
Messi’s latest Golden Boot follows an equally impressive 2025 season. He scored 29 goals in just 28 appearances to finish as the league’s leading scorer, finishing ahead of Denis Bouanga and Sam Surridge.
His contribution extended well beyond goalscoring. The Argentine registered 19 assists during the campaign, finishing as the league’s leading provider as well. His exceptional performances earned him the MLS Most Valuable Player (MVP) award, recognising his influence and importance to Inter Miami.
He is once again among the leading contenders for the MVP honour in 2026. His ability to score goals, create opportunities and dictate attacking play has continued to make him one of the competition’s most influential performers. Even at 39, Messi remains central to Miami’s ambitions.
Meanwhile, Nashville SC established a new benchmark in the league’s regular-season history. They defeated FC Cincinnati 2-0 in another fixture, taking their final points tally to 77.
That achievement surpassed the previous record of 74 points, set by Inter Miami in 2024. Nashville’s total now represents the highest points tally recorded by a team in a single MLS regular season, highlighting the consistency of their performances throughout the campaign.
Attention will now shift to the play-offs, where Inter Miami are set to face seventh-placed Columbus Crew in the opening round. Under the competition’s format, the first round will be contested as a best-of-three series, with the first team to secure two victories progressing to the next stage.
Miami’s second-place finish in the Eastern Conference provides an important advantage, allowing the club to enjoy home-ground privileges during the opening-round series.
For Messi, the next objective will be to turn another outstanding individual campaign into collective success. Having secured consecutive Golden Boots and helped Inter Miami qualify for the play-offs, the Argentine will now be looking to guide his team through the knockout stages and towards another MLS title challenge.
