Can Inter Miami defend their MLS Cup title next year?

In the MLS regular season, David Beckham's Inter Miami finished third in the Eastern Conference, only one point behind Philadelphia Union, who finished first. A third-place finish guaranteed a spot in the MLS play-offs, where they took on Nashville SC. Miami's final regular-season game was against Nashville, and the Florida outfit won the game convincingly 5-2. In the game, Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick to seal an end-of-season win for his team.

In the space of three weeks, Inter Miami and Nashville played each other four times, with Miami winning three of the games, booking their spot in the quarter-finals against FC Cincinnati.

The fixture was one-legged, and Cincinnati were at home, giving them a slight advantage. However, when the game began, Miami seemed like the home side as the team took an early lead 19 minutes in. Messi yet again was on the scoresheet, and he played a crucial role in the game. The full-time scoreline was 4-0 to Inter Miami, who beat FC Cincinnati away from home. FC Cincinnati finished above Javier Mascherano's team by one spot in the table, but both teams had 56 points at the end of the regular campaign.

The next opponent for Inter Miami was New York City at home, with their opponents finishing fifth in the Eastern Conference. The semi-final was another goalfest, and once again Mascherano's side were the winners. They were 5-1 winners against the side from New York, booking a spot in the MLS Cup final against Vancouver Whitecaps.

Vancouver finished second in the Western Conference, but had two points less than Miami. Beckham's team scored the most goals during the 2025 season, while the Whitecaps had the second-best record in the league.

Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets confirmed that they were both retiring at the end of Inter Miami's season, so the MLS Cup final was going to be their last professional match.

At home, Inter Miami were the favourites going into the clash against Thomas Müller's side. Eight minutes in, the favourites found themselves 1-0 up through an own goal. On the hour mark, Ali Ahmed brought his side level, ahead of the final 30 minutes of the game. But former Atlético Madrid midfielder Rodrigo de Paul gave his side the lead once again, with Messi getting the assist. Deep into added time, Tadeo Allende added a third to the scoreline, sealing a 3-1 win for Inter Miami.

For the first time in the club's history, Inter Miami lifted the MLS Cup trophy. They beat Vancouver Whitecaps in the final in Florida to be crowned as the best team in the MLS for 2025.

With the off-season currently underway, Miami will be looking to strengthen their squad ahead of next season. They have already confirmed the signing of former Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United and Sevilla left-back Sergio Reguilón, following his departure from Spurs.

Luis Suárez has extended his contract with the club, helping maintain their strong front line.

The club have been linked with plenty of players across the world, but nothing is advanced so far. Players who have been linked with the club are Antoine Griezmann, Paulo Dybala, Timo Werner and Giovani Lo Celso.

Miami won eight of their final nine matches of the season, highlighting their dominance in the MLS at the latter stage of the campaign, which ended in cup glory.

Lionel Messi finished as the league's top goalscorer, netting 35 goals in 34 appearances. He also had 28 assists, along with picking up the MLS MVP award for 2025.

Do you think the Florida club will retain the MLS title in 2026?