Top 5 MLS Storylines: Messi Eyes Repeat, USA Players Seek World Cup Spots

This Major League Soccer season will be an historic one in so many ways. We'll see Lionel Messi and Inter Miami aim to repeat as MLS Cup champions. We'll see him aim to also repeat with his other team this summer at the World Cup, the largest that will be ever staged. But there will be plenty of other reasons to tune in to this season, which kicks off on Saturday with a full slate of games, including a nationally televised match between FC Cincinnati and Atlanta United. Here are five big storylines to follow as the 2026 campaign gets underway: Another Trophy Haul For Lionel Messi? The last time we saw Lionel Messi, in December at the 2025 MLS Cup final, he and his Inter Miami teammates were bathed in champagne after winning the domestic league’s ultimate prize. The spotlight will remain on the GOAT in early 2026. According to the man himself, Messi’s participation with Argentina’s national team in the 2026 FIFA World Cup will hinge on his health during the early part of the MLS campaign. Messi turns 39 in the summer and the living legend has already had some injury worries during preseason, with the Herons even canceling a friendly match in Puerto Rico because Messi couldn’t play. Still, the expectation is that the Albiceleste captain will do everything possible to make sure he’s available to captain his country when Argentina begins the defense of the World Cup it won four years ago in the country he currently calls home. World Cup Audition For Key USA Players Orlando City may have shipped young fullback Alex Freeman to La Liga’s Villarreal last month, but the first few months of the 2026 season will serve as a crucial proving ground for several other MLS-based USA players who are aiming to make Mauricio Pochettino‘s roster for this summer’s World Cup. Chief among them are captain Tim Ream; goalkeepers Matt Freese (New York City FC) and Matt Turner (New England Revolution); left back Max Arfsten (Columbus Crew); midfielders Sebastian Berhalter (Vancouver Whitecaps) and Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders); and forward Diego Luna (Real Salt Lake). Those right on the World Cup bubble include Crew keeper Patrick Schulte, FC Cincinnati duo Roman Celentano and Miles Robinson, along with Toronto FC centerback Walker Zimmerman. A few others also remain in the mix, both for the high-profile March tuneups against Belgium and Portugal and the final 26-man squad. Based on the former Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain manager’s selections over the second half of last year, as many as 10 MLS-based players are expected to be on the rosters. Time will tell who those could be. MLS Representation on Canada and Mexico Squads? It’s not just USA players. At Qatar 2022, more World Cup players came from MLS than any league outside of England’s Premier League, Spain’s La Liga, Germany’s Bundesliga, Italy’s Serie A and France's Ligue 1. An even larger percentage will come from the league this summer. While most of Canada’s projected starting lineup at the 2026 World Cup will be European-based, their starting keeper will be either Inter Miami’s Dayne St. Clair or Orlando City’s Maxime Crépeau. The competition for roster places is stiff, with the Chicago Fire’s Joel Waterman, Portland Timbers' Kamal Miller and LAFC pair Mathieu Choiniere and Jacob Shaffelburg all firmly in the running under Canada manager Jesse Marsch. Mexico, the other host nation, could have some players with MLS ties on its World Cup squad. German Berterame, newly signed to Miami after a fruitful stint with Liga MX side Monterrey, could make Mexico's final squad. Hirving "Chucky" Lozano, who remains in limbo with San Diego FC amid drama with the coaching staff and front office, is also in the mix. More Big Summer Signings Ahead? Earlier this month, Minnesota United made waves by inking Colombian superstar James Rodriguez. The former Real Madrid and Bayern Munich forward signed with the Loons only until June, ultimaltey deciding that MLS would provide ideal World Cup preparation. He isn’t alone. James chose MLS on the heels of last summer’s marquee arrivals of Messi’s Argentina teammate Rodrigo De Paul (Inter Miami), South Korean icon Son Heung-min (LAFC) and German great Thomas Muller (Vancouver). A few of global soccer’s other household names could inevitably join them after the biggest World Cup in history is over. Kevin De Bruyne, Antoine Griezmann, Robert Lewandowski, Mohamed Salah and maybe even Cristiano Ronaldo are popular candidates. But MLS is nearing the day when it can pry elite talents from Europe in their prime. Or maybe it already has. De Paul had just turned 31 when he left Atlético Madrid for South Florida; the 2022 World Cup winner promptly led Miami to its MLS Cup triumph by scoring the clincher against Vancouver. And this winter, the San Jose Earthquakes landed striker Timo Werner. While Werner needed a change of scenery after opportunities across the pond dried up, he has 24 goals in 57 appearances for Germany and is still only 29. Alignment With European Soccer Calendar For the first three decades of its existence, MLS — which launched in 1996 — started its season early in the calendar year and finished in the fall. That will change in 2027 when MLS aligns with the European schedule, which begins in late summer and ends in the spring. That means this is the last campaign under the league’s original format. The switch will fundamentally change the product, and it should help front offices land better players now that the transfer windows are the same as in other top circuits.