GOAL looks back at a wild campaign that was headlined by Inter Miami's mega move for the World Cup winner
We've finally reached the final match of the MLS season: LAFC at the Columbus Crew in a huge MLS Cup battle to determine a league champion. The winner will reign supreme after perhaps the most important year in league history, one in which all of U.S. soccer was turned on its head by one big signing.
Yes, this has to start with Lionel Messi, the player who singlehandedly changed the trajectory of the league. By the time the MLS Cup kicks off, it'll have been over a month since we've seen him in Inter Miami pink but, even so, he looms over everything that goes on in the league these days.
Both the Crew and LAFC can count themselves among the big winners this season, having battled their way all the way to the final. For LAFC, Saturday is a chance to go back-to-back. For the Crew, it's an opportunity to claim another title under a different coach, showing that the brand in Ohio is as strong as ever just a few short years after the club was so close to being taken away.
Aside from those two, though, who are the league's biggest winners and losers? GOAL looks back at the season that was in MLS ahead of this weekend's big game…
Getty ImagesWINNER: Inter Miami
In 2023, there may not have been a bigger winner in global soccer than Inter Miami.
Lionel Messi, to many the greatest soccer player to ever live, arrived in South Florida. It's still a sentence and an idea that remains hard to fathom. After so many years terrorizing the rest of the world, Messi decided his next step was to come to MLS and, more specifically, David Beckham's project on South Beach.
That decision paid immediate dividends on the field. The club went on to lift the Leagues Cup while embarking on a run more exciting than any this league has ever seen. That stretch alone justified the hype that came with Messi's arrival and, even if they did fall just short of a spot in the MLS Playoffs, that hype will carry into 2024.
Messi has arrived and isn't going anywhere for the foreseeable future. Now, Inter Miami is positioned to build itself into a superpower unlike any American soccer has ever seen. As for the rest of us, we'll just have to see what comes next.
AdvertisementGettyLOSER: Phil Neville
He has another big job now, so don't feel too bad for Neville. He'll be getting the chance to prove his doubters wrong by leading the Portland Timbers into 2024.
Still, for a while there, he must have been looking at what was going on in Miami with some degree of envy. Neville must have realized how close he was to hitting the jackpot.
Dismissed just weeks before Messi's arrival, Neville paid the price for the slow start that ultimately cost Miami a playoff spot. At the time, Miami were the worst team in MLS, and that descent happened under Neville's watch.
Still, one has to wonder what Neville could have done if it were he, not Tata Martino, in charge of a Messi-led Miami. Comparing the group he had to the side Martino inherited is really apples and oranges, simply because the former didn't have Messi, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets.
It's safe to say Neville's time in Miami didn't go as planned, as, hampered by league punishments and roster restrictions, the Herons never really took off. Now, Neville will get a chance to prove himself in Portland, and it may just be his last chance at a high-profile job if things go south like they did on South Beach.
Getty ImagesWINNER: FC Cincinnati
It ended prematurely, but you have to give FC Cincinnati credit for what that club has built.
From the Wooden Spoon to the Supporters' Shield, FC Cincinnati has legitimately gone from worst to first, all while turning their home stadium into a fantastic venue for soccer. That support was always there but, this year, those seated in the Bailey really had a team worth cheering, one that was as entertaining as any in the league.
Led by MVP winner Luciano Acosta and USMNT hopeful Brandon Vazquez, FC Cincinnati had one of the best attacks in the league, even after selling star striker Brenner for a hefty transfer fee. Defensively, MLS Defender of the Year Matt Miazga was fantastic, when he wasn't stirring up trouble in the postseason.
If the club can keep this group together, and that's a big if, Pat Noonan seems like he can build something great. There's a foundation there, one that won't let it sink back to the depths of yesteryear. Keeping Vazquez will be difficult, but Cincy is an ambitious club that can find a way to replace him.
Overall, it was a fantastic run, even if it ended painfully in a defeat to Crew. Cincy is on the right path, and the odds are that they'll be back competing next year.
GettyLOSER: Wayne Rooney & D.C. United
When Wayne Rooney made his return to D.C. United, it felt like the club was ready to get back to its heyday. No, not the heyday of Rooney's time with the club as a player… the real heyday. For years, D.C. were a force and, with Rooney at the helm, it felt like all involved had the ambition to make that real once again.
Now, at the end of the season, we know that didn't happen. There was no return to glory, and now there's no Rooney. He's gone, leaving D.C. at yet another crossroads.
The team did get better this season, improving on a dismal 2022. Still, an incident of alleged racism involving their best player, Taxi Fountas, robbed Rooney of his biggest weapon, and it all went downhill from there.
Rooney's best effort wasn't enough to make the playoffs, and it wasn't enough to convince all involved to keep the partnership going. He jolted back to England to take charge of Birmingham City while D.C. prepares for the latest rebuild.