MLS 2026: LAFC Are Favourites To Win The Title | OneFootball

Los Angeles FC (LAFC) continued their best-ever start to a Major League Soccer (MLS) season with a 2-0 home victory over St Louis City on Saturday.

Mathieu Choiniere scored twice on his first league start of the campaign to help LAFC become the only team with a 4-0-0 record this term. LAFC have also yet to concede a goal.

While Inter Miami star Lionel Messi is on a mission to impress in a World Cup year, LAFC have been quietly demonstrating why many people have tipped them to win the title.

Just three teams have retained the MLS Cup – DC United (1996 & 1997), Houston Dynamo (2006 & 2007), and Los Angeles Galaxy (2011 & 2012).

However, digging a little deeper into the statistics reveals another strong reason why Miami will find it difficult to win another MLS Cup.

Aside from the three teams who retained the MLS Cup, only three others reached the final the year after they claimed the title – DC United (1998), Seattle Sounders (2020) and LAFC (2023).

While the weight of that trend may suggest that reaching consecutive finals has become a little easier, retaining the trophy remains a tricky task.

LAFC’s early season form has sent a message to the rest of the league that they should be rated as the favourites to win the title this term.

Head coach Marc Dos Santos has a strong squad at his disposal, as evidenced by the impressive 2-0 home victory over St Louis City.

He made three changes to the team that beat FC Dallas 1-0 last weekend, with Choiniere, Nathan Ordaz and Ryan Raposo replacing Stephen Eustaquio, Sergi Palencia and Timothy Tillman.

LAFC did not miss a beat, keeping St Louis at bay to become just the fourth team in MLS history to record a clean sheet in each of its first four games of the season.

They have surged to the top of the Western Conference standings despite former Tottenham Hotspur forward Heung-min Son’s disappointing start to the new season.

The South Korean international was renowned for being a ‘streaky’ player in the Premier League, and MLS defences will need to be wary over the next few weeks.

If Son rediscovers his scoring touch, LAFC will be extremely tough to stop in their bid to win the MLS Cup for the second time.