Next, Son Heung-min's turn, Messi, the god of soccer, overwhelming 70% turnout to become the first MLS back-to-back MVP in history

Next, Son Heung-min's turn, Messi, the god of soccer, overwhelming 70% turnout to become the first MLS back-to-back MVP in history
사진=MLS



Lionel Messi has rewritten the history of American football.

The U.S. Major League Soccer (MLS) secretariat said on its official website on the 10th (Korea time) that Inter Miami CF striker Messi was selected as 2025 Landon Donovan MLS MVP. He became the first player in league history to win MVP for two consecutive years.
Next, Son Heung-min's turn, Messi, the god of soccer, overwhelming 70% turnout to become the first MLS back-to-back MVP in history
사진=MLS
In MLS history, which began in 1996, Messi is the only player who has been named MVP for two consecutive seasons. The MLS Secretariat slowly shed light on Messi's performance in the 2025 season. First, Messi, the winner of the MLS Golden Boot in the 2025 season, scored 29 goals and 19 assists in 28 games, surpassing 20 goals and 16 assists in the 2024 MVP season. Messi's 48 offensive points in the regular season are the second-most in MLS history, one behind the record (49) set by LAFC's Carlos Vela in 2019,' he said, explaining that Messi showed better performance than last season when he won the MVP award.

Argentina legend Messi then set a new MLS record of at least three offensive points in nine consecutive games and multiple goals in 10 games of the season. He also became the first player in MLS history to score more than 36 offensive points in more than two seasons', highlighting Messi's achievements in the regular season.




Next, Son Heung-min's turn, Messi, the god of soccer, overwhelming 70% turnout to become the first MLS back-to-back MVP in history
사진=MLS
Messi's performance was also great in the playoffs. In the '2025 MLS Cup Playoff, Messi also recorded the most ever with six goals and nine assists, a total of 15 offensive points. As Inter Miami beat Vancouver Whitecaps FC 3-1 to win the club's first MLS Cup in history, he was also named MLS Cup 2025 MVP'

Messi's winning back-to-back MVP was virtually without a competitor. Anders Dreyer (San Diego FC), Dnie Buanga (LAFC), Evander (FC Cincinnati), and Sam Surridge (Nashville SC) were contenders for MVP, but Messi had a total of 70.43% of the vote. It was Messi, who received about 83% support in the media vote, about 55% in the player vote and about 73% in the club vote. The gap with the second-place dryer was a whopping 59 percent. In other words, he is an overwhelming MVP.

Next, Son Heung-min's turn, Messi, the god of soccer, overwhelming 70% turnout to become the first MLS back-to-back MVP in history
사진=MLS
Next season, Messi will be threatened by Son Heung-min for the MVP competition. Given that Son Heung-min has already become a key offensive resource for LAFC, the MVP competition with Messi next season is realistic enough.




Although it is different from Messi's 29 goals and 19 assists in 28 games, Son Heung-min scored 9 goals and 3 assists in 10 games during the regular season, making LAFC considered a favorite at once. In the playoffs, he also proved himself to be LAFC's flagship with three goals and one assist in three games. As the rival structure of Son Heung-min of the Western Conference and Messi of the Eastern Conference has been properly formed, if team performance and personal records rise at the same time, the league's highest-level competitive structure of `Son Heung-min vs Messi' is expected to be visible in earnest.



This article was translated by Naver AI translator.