Can anyone stop Messi’s Miami from going back-to-back?

By [Staff Writer]

Major League Soccer’s 2026 season kicks off Saturday night under the lights of the historic L.A. Coliseum, and the question hanging over the league is as blunt as it is tantalizing: can anyone stop Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami from repeating as champions?

Twelve months after the Argentine maestro delivered Miami its first MLS Cup, the Herons have spent the winter upgrading what was already the league’s most star-studded roster. Out went retiring Barcelona legends Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba; in came a wave of reinforcements designed to tighten a defense that too often leaked goals and to keep Messi in his preferred playmaker role.

Dayne St. Clair, the 2025 MLS Goalkeeper of the Year, arrives from Minnesota United to claim the No. 1 shirt. Brazilian center-back Micael, fresh from a season with Palmeiras, re-enters the league to add steel in front of him. Sergio Reguilón, once of Real Madrid and Tottenham, slots in at left back, while David Ayala’s move from Portland gives manager Javier Mascherano a box-to-box option alongside World Cup winner Rodrigo De Paul.

Up top, the acquisition of Monterrey striker Germán Berterame allows Luis Suárez to drop to the bench, freeing Messi to orchestrate from the No. 10 pocket rather than the false-nine duties he occasionally shouldered last year. With one designated-player spot still open, Miami’s front office has room for another splash before the summer window closes.

The makeover has bookmakers installing Miami as the most talented squad, on paper, in recent MLS memory. The club will need every ounce of that depth: beyond the league title defense, Miami is chasing a first Concacaf Champions Cup crown and a berth in the 2029 Club World Cup after occupying the host slot in 2025. The stakes will be showcased in early April when the franchise opens Miami Freedom Park, a privately built stadium complex near the airport that ownership hopes becomes the league’s new marquee venue.

Standing in Miami’s path Saturday is an LAFC side determined to turn the Coliseum opener into a statement of intent. Son Heung-Min, who dazzled in a half-season cameo last summer, enters 2026 rested and surrounded by familiar firepower. Denis Bouanga—courted by Brazilian giants and, reportedly, by Miami—remains in black and gold after three straight 20-goal campaigns. The Gabonese forward’s chemistry with Son blossomed down the stretch, giving LAFC one of the league’s most feared attacking duos.

New manager Marc dos Santos, promoted after Steve Cherundolo’s surprise return to Germany, has reinforced the midfield with Canada’s Stephen Eustáquio on a short-term loan that could become permanent if the 29-year-old replicates his national-team form. A healthy Aaron Long, registered for the Champions Cup, could return from an Achilles injury by early summer to solidify a back line that conceded soft goals a year ago.

Yet the pressure on dos Santos is immense. LAFC’s front office opted for internal continuity rather than an external hire, and the gamble will be judged quickly in a conference where Vancouver, the Galaxy and a reshaped San Jose all fancy themselves contenders.

The Whitecaps, runners-up in both MLS Cup and the Champions Cup last season, welcome Thomas Müller for a full campaign after the German legend’s mid-year arrival. Jayden Nelson’s departure to Austin and Ali Ahmed’s exit to Norwich leave room for fresh faces, but the core that pushed Miami to the brink in 2025 remains intact.

Across the continent, star power keeps arriving. James Rodríguez joins a Minnesota side adjusting to life without manager Eric Ramsay, while Timo Werner hopes to resurrect his career with the Quakes after a turbulent spell at Leipzig and Spurs. Austin FC lured Facundo Torres back from Palmeiras as a designated player, and D.C. United bet on Romanian forward Louis Munteanu to boost a strike force that mustered just 30 goals last season.

Intra-league movement has never been busier. D.C. poached 18-goal Union striker Tai Baribo, the Galaxy imported João Klauss from St. Louis, and Portland replaced Ayala with Colorado’s Cole Bassett. U.S. youth internationals Brooklyn Raines and Reed Baker-Whiting also swapped jerseys, a reminder that MLS clubs now value proven domestic production as highly as foreign glamour.

The calendar adds another layer of intrigue. The league will pause in late May for the North American World Cup, releasing stars to national teams and resuming the weekend before the July final. Stadiums in Atlanta, Seattle, Vancouver and New England will host matches; training sites dot the map from Foxborough to Frisco. Managers must balance peak fitness for internationals with sharpness for the stretch run and the Leagues Cup that follows.

All roads, however, still lead through Miami. Messi, De Paul and company begin the journey chasing history: a repeat MLS crown, continental supremacy and a send-off for their iconic No. 10 in the city’s new cathedral of soccer. Whether Son, Bouanga and a retooled LAFC—or an ambitious challenger from Vancouver, Minnesota or elsewhere—can derail that mission is the plot line that will dominate the next nine months.

The answer starts Saturday night under the Coliseum lights. The rest of MLS has eight months to find a response.