It's the end of the MLS regular season and that means it's the end of How We Voted, the column all about my voting decisions for each MLS Player of the Matchday.
The goal of doing this was to highlight different players from around the league who stood out, a way to break up our usual laser focus on New York City FC with some cross-MLS coverage.
This is the 34th installment of the column, a giveaway that I didn't publish for every single Matchday since there were 39 of them, but also a fitting number since each team plays 34 matches in a Major League Soccer season.
The player who gets the spotlight in this last edition got my vote a total of five times this season – and won the Player of the Matchday award six different times, while winning the Golden Boot, and cementing his status as still unquestionably the league's best player.
There's one more Team of the Matchday to review, too, and then it's on to the postseason and on to handing out end-of-season awards. This column might make one more appearance before the year's out with a rundown of end-of-year awards voting decisions, but for now, read up on the two standout players from MLS Decision Day 2025, who also happened to be the best players in the league over the course of the season.
The HRB Ballot, Decision Day
1. Lionel Messi, Inter Miami CF
The first goal Lionel Messi scored against Nashville SC on Decision Day was one of his best of the season, a season in which he scored 29 times in MLS play and 37 times across all competitions for Miami.
Video via @InterMiamiCF
