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Son Heung-min and Lionel Messi, who play in the same league as the U.S. Major League Soccer (MLS). However, it is not expected that the two players will face off easily.
MLS is a hot topic with Son Heung-min's recent appearance. Son Heung-min, who left the English Premier League (EPL) stage after finishing his career at Tottenham since 2015, headed to the U.S. this summer wearing an LA FC uniform. As Asia's top soccer star stepped on the MLS stage, fans cheered. Son Heung-min's appearance in LA received great attention, which was revealed from the first game.
Son Heung-min was substituted in the 16th minute of the second half in the 2025 Major League Soccer (MLS) away game against the Chicago Fire, which was his LA FC debut, and played for about 29 minutes. It was enough time to show Son's skills. Son Heung-min, who contributed to the team's draw by winning a penalty kick, was praised in the U.S. media for showing his skills perfectly even in a short period of time.
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With Son Heung-min's appearance, the element that has no choice but to draw attention is the confrontation with Messi. Messi, who moved to the MLS stage in 2023 earlier than Son Heung-min, has already been playing in Miami for three seasons in an Inter Miami uniform.
Son Heung-min and Messi. The two players have already been listed as MLS's all-time best player rankings. Sports Illustrated in the United States revealed the best player of all time in MLS from 1st to 10th. Among them, Son Heung-min proudly ranked fourth. Messi was by far the first place. It was a natural ranking for a being that has become a symbol of MLS. Along with the presence of the two players, attention is bound to be paid to whether they will face off or not. If the world's best soccer player and Asia's best star face off, it can have a great effect in terms of MLS box office.
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However, it may not be easy for the two players to face off until the retirement time. It is because of the unique and special regulations of MLS. Unlike the European league, where 18 to 20 teams compete under a single league system, MLS, where 30 teams compete, is divided into 15 teams in the Eastern and Western conferences.
The East and West teams are also different. In the course of a total of 34 games in a season, two games are played against teams from each conference, and six random teams from other conference teams that do not belong. Therefore, the face-off between the East and West teams is entirely up to luck. The same goes for Messi and Son Heung-min's showdown.
LA FC will play New York City FC, CF Montreal, Chicago Fire, New England Revolution, Atlanta United, and Toronto FC among the Eastern teams this season. Among them, they have already played against the New York City, Montreal, and Chicago Fire. It is not known whether the confrontation will take place in the next season.
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There is also one way to leave it to chance. It's the playoff final. MLS, unlike other leagues, has a playoff system. After the end of the regular league, the top seven teams in the conference will go straight to the MLS Cup playoffs, and the remaining seats will be decided by the eighth and ninth-ranked teams. After that, each conference team that won the playoff through the match will face off in the MLS Cup final. If Son Heung-min's LA FC and Messi's Miami win the conference, they may compete for the trophy in the MLS Cup final.
Although they are in the same league, it is difficult to see Son Heung-min and Messi face off for the time being, contrary to fans' expectations. That's a landscape that can only be seen in the United States, Soccer's country, not football. However, it seems clear that if the two players can face each other in the most important game, it will be the best game to shake up MLS.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
