Lionel Messi is about to close the 2026 MLS regular season with a mark he had never reached since joining Inter Miami. According to insider José Armando, the captain is set to play his 31st regular-season match of the year against Charlotte FC, the most appearances he has had in a single MLS season with the club.
The previous high was 28 matches in 2025, when Messi scored 29 goals and provided 19 assists on his way to the MLS Golden Boot and the MVP award. This year he arrived at the finale with 30 league appearances, and the MLS Golden Boot tracker had him at 2,574 minutes played, a sign of how much Inter Miami have leaned on their captain throughout a long campaign.
His workload has also come with production. Messi entered the final day at the top of the scoring chart with 26 goals, four more than Dallas forward Petar Musa, and with 14 assists.
The match that will give Messi a personal record also has a lot at stake for Inter Miami in the standings. The team moved into second place after beating New England 2-1 on the road, and a win over Charlotte would guarantee that position, leaving them well placed heading into the playoffs.
Messi on the verge of two feats no MLS player has pulled off
Messi’s final day in the regular season could add two more entries to his list of firsts in MLS, starting with the Golden Boot. He enters Decision Day with 26 goals and one more scoring title would make him the first player in the league’s 31-year history to win it in two consecutive seasons.
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The other milestone within reach is the MVP award. Messi is the main candidate to collect his third in only three full seasons with Inter Miami, which has never been done in MLS. He already has two, and a third would leave him alone at the top of the league’s most prestigious individual honor.
Whatever happens against Charlotte, the focus will soon move to the playoffs, which begin on Nov. 18. If both awards end up in his hands, Messi would finish the year with the kind of double that no one before him has achieved in the league.
