The start of the 2025 MLS season was one for the record books. Matchday 1 saw 46 goals scored throughout Saturday and Sunday, kicking off an electric start to MLS’ 30th season. The 46 goals scored over the weekend were the most ever in MLS history in the opening week.
Along with a record-breaking goals record, a new club made its debut. San Diego FC, the 30th MLS club, beat defending champions LA Galaxy 2-0 in their debut.
Here are some of the top highlights from a thrilling opening week in MLS
Union take down Orlando City in Bradley Carnell’s debut
The Philadelphia Union rolled into Inter&Co Stadium to face Orlando City and left with three points in the bag. New Union manager Bradley Carnell’s debut was worthwhile as the Union took down Orlando, 4-2.
Tai Baribo scored the Union’s first goal in the 23′ and added a brace in the 64′. Daniel Gazdag scored in the 48′ and Mikael Uhre in the 51′.
Four players also made their MLS debuts for the Union. Frankie Westfield, Olwethu Makhanya, Ian Glavinovich, and Jovan Lukic made their opening appearances for The Boys in Blue. Westfield, a homegrown product, tallied an assist on Baribo’s second goal of the game.
The Union made a few mistakes, most notably on defense, but Carnell’s high-pressing system took advantage of Orlando.
San Diego stuns LA Galaxy in club debut
In the club’s MLS debut, San Diego FC defeated the reigning MLS Cup Champions LA Galaxy on their home turf.
Anders Dreyer scored a brace (52′, 90+3′) to give San Diego its first three points. San Diego became the third MLS expansion team since 2017 to win its opening match. San Diego’s supporter section was rocking in LA, showing the excitement and passion the fans have for their new club.
Miami scores in the 90+10′ to draw against NYCFC
The 2024 Supporters’ Shield winners Inter Miami picked up one point in a 2-2 draw against NYCFC. Miami picked up an early lead in the first half until NYCFC scored two consecutive goals.
Tomas Aviles, who scored for Miami in the 5′, was given a red card in the 23′. Miami would be down to just 10 men for the remainder of the game. In the 10 minutes of added stoppage time in the second half, Telasco Segovia equalized the game for Miami so they could walk away with one point. Lionel Messi threaded a through ball to Segovia, who added the tying goal in his MLS debut. Messi assisted on both of Miami’s goals in the draw.
San Jose blanks Salt Lake City, 4-0
Last season, the San Jose Earthquakes finished with the least amount of points in the whole league with 21. After some offseason changes, they came out of the gates firing against Salt Lake City en route to a 4-0 win.
Jamar Ricketts, Rodrigues, Ousseni Bouda, and Vitor Costa added goals in San Jose’s win. San Jose head coach Bruce Arena joined Bob Bradley as the only coaches in league history to win a game with at least five different MLS clubs.
After the addition of Arenas and other offseason moves, better days are ahead for San Jose.
Lathe propels Atlanta United over CF Montréal
Emmanuel Latte Lath arrived at Atlanta United from EFL Championship side Middlesbrough FC earlier this month on an MLS record $22 million transfer fee. In his MLS debut, he added a brace (42′, 63′) for Atlanta in a 3-2 win. 65,520 fans also attended the match at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Saturday, making it the third-highest-attended match globally.
Edwin Mosquera broke the 2-2 tie in the 85′ to give Atlanta three points. Miguel Almiron, who rejoined Atlanta this offseason from Newcastle United, assisted on Mosquera’s winning goal.
MLS Standings: Matchday 1
MLS Eastern Conference Standings
Columbus Crew – 3 pts
Philadelphia Union – 3 pts
Atlanta United – 3 pts
FC Cincinnati – 3 pts
Charlotte FC – 1 pt
D.C. United – 1 pt
Inter Miami – 1 pt
NYCFC – 1 pt
Toronto FC – 1 pt
Nashville FC – 1 pt
New England Revolution – 1 pt
CF Montréal – 0 pts
New York Red Bulls – 0 pts
Chicago Fire – 0 pts
Orlando City – 0pts
MLS Western Conference Standings
San Jose Earthquakes – 3 pts
Vancouver Whitecaps – 3 pts
San Diego FC – 3 pts
FC Dallas – 3 pts
Austin FC – 3 pts
LAFC – 3 pts
Seattle Sounders FC – 1 pt
Colorado Rapids – 1 pt
St. Louis City – 1 pt
Houston Dynamo – 0 pts
Minnesota United – 0 pts
Sporting Kansas City – 0 pts
LA Galaxy – 0 pts
Portland Timbers – 0 pts
Real Salt Lake – 0 pts
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