What We Learned: Miami mean business, Orlando bring fireworks

Matchday 31 is in the books.

What did we learn? Did the games confirm what we already knew, or did they change the complexion of the league?

Let’s dive into some key takeaways from another weekend of MLS action.

It’s the scariest time of the year for every team in the league not named Inter Miami CF, because the defending MLS Cup presented by Audi champs have awoken.

After a stretch of one win in 11 games across both MLS and Leagues Cup play in August and September, the Herons are unbeaten since the calendar flipped to October. Their third straight win came on Walmart Saturday Showdown against Atlanta United, with Lionel Messi grabbing a brace and record-breaking assist in a 3-1 road triumph.

Messi was, as we’ve come to expect over the last two decades, transcendently great. He put the Five Stripes’ center backs into the blender on repeat:

While Messi served as the headliner, he wasn’t the only high-functioning piece of Inter Miami’s puzzle. Germán Berterame, who has struggled much of the season after joining as a Designated Player in the winter, scored and added a pair of assists against Atlanta, bringing his goal contribution tally to seven in the last three matches. 

At the other end, Dayne St. Clair’s big-time save on a Miguel Almirón strike early in the second half could help inspire confidence in the first-year Miami goalkeeper after his spell on the bench earlier this season.

The stars seem to be hitting their stride, the results are coming thick and fast, and Inter Miami may just be the team to beat come Audi MLS Cup Playoffs time.

I would like to humbly posit that there’s no more entertaining team in MLS than Orlando City.

Consider this as evidence: in each of the Lions’ last seven league games, at least one team has scored three goals. Against D.C. United on Saturday, it was Orlando who bagged at least three, managing a quartet of tallies in a 4-1 victory.

Orlando City’s attack was truly spectacular on the night. Antoine Griezmann notched a brace while both Martín Ojeda and Marco Pašalić scored. Ojeda’s goal was breathtaking:

AT&T MLS Goal of the Year? AT&T MLS Goal of the Year.

With so many high-powered attackers in his squad (Justin Ellis and Pašalić didn’t even start!), interim manager Martín Perelman has a difficult question to answer when it comes to his lineup every match.

On Saturday, Griezmann started underneath Daryl Dike, while Ojeda patrolled the left half-space. It worked a treat. But Griezmann could just as easily start higher, with Ojeda underneath and Pašalić on the wing. Or Ellis could start up top. Or — well, the permutations go on and on.

Regardless of the exact lineup, Orlando rank in the top six in the league for both goals for and goals against. Skip one of their matches at your own peril.

Don’t look now, but the Columbus Crew are just one point back of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Sitting on 35 points following their 2-0 victory at Hell is Real rivals FC Cincinnati on Sunday Night Soccer presented by Continental Tire, the Crew find themselves nipping at the heels of Wild Card outfits Red Bull New York and their aforementioned Ohio neighbors.

With four wins in their last five league games, Columbus may just be hitting their stride at the right time — especially with the US Open Cup final against St. Louis City coming up on Wednesday. Part of the reason for the Crew’s recent success? Taha Habroune’s improvement. The 20-year-old homegrown has stepped up in a major way in recent matches: he’s currently in the midst of a three-game scoring streak. 

Habroune’s goal in Sunday’s Hell is Real clash encapsulates so much of what makes the young midfielder dangerous. He’s brilliant at moving off the ball, thriving as a late-arriving runner:

Still, Habroune is more than just a runner. He’s been trusted by interim manager Laurent Courtois to play as a central midfielder rather than a purely attacking one, showing quality on the ball and steel in challenges. 

Growing in just about every facet of his game, Habroune might be playing his way into the US men’s national team picture — and the Crew might be playing their way into the postseason.

Much like Columbus, it certainly seems like Toronto FC are hitting their stride at the perfect moment. 

With seven points in their last three matches, including a 2-0 win at Red Bull New York on Saturday, Toronto are level on points with both of the East’s Wild Card outfits. Though they still sit in 10th place, it’s not a stretch to imagine Robin Fraser’s team pushing their way above the playoff line before Decision Day.

Perhaps the biggest contributing factor to Toronto FC’s renewed form is their return to fitness. With Djordje Mihailovic once again healthy enough to start, Toronto finally have a way to feed Josh Sargent in the attack. Add Niklas Dorsch patrolling center midfield, and so many of the most important members of the club’s spine are finally on the field together.

Little about Toronto FC is flashy. It’s still unclear exactly how much of what they’re doing is repeatable, either. They managed just two shots from inside the box against Red Bull New York. But this version of Toronto might just have the juice to land a Wild Card berth out East.

Between missing Zavier Gozo on the right wing after his eight-figure move to Crystal Palace in the English Premier League over the summer and a tangled web of injuries, things have been rough for Real Salt Lake.

After a red-hot start to 2026, RSL went 13 straight games without a win in league play from just before the 2026 FIFA World Cup break to late September.

Now, though, the points have begun to flow once again for Salt Lake. 

They’ve snagged seven points across their last four games — and that four-game stretch has included some difficult matches. They bested the New England Revolution by a 3-0 scoreline to close out September and managed a 1-1 draw with the San Jose Earthquakes before topping Sporting Kansas City, 3-1, away from home on Saturday. With a pair of goals from Morgan Guilavogui and a strike from Sergi Solans, some of the drivers of Real Salt Lake’s early season success showed up in a big way against Kansas City. More physicality in central defense has been a theme across this boosted form, too. 

Diego Luna’s injury absence is being felt, not unlike Gozo’s departure, while injuries in central midfield and the backline are still rearing their ugly heads. But Salt Lake look closer to their March selves than they have since, well, March. Sitting just three points outside the West’s postseason field, don’t blink twice if they hop above the line in the weeks to come.