The Race to 100: Martínez and Zardes Look to Make History in New Digs
Only 11 players in MLS history have scored 100 regular season goals, and two others will look to add to that total in 2023: Josef Martínez and Gyasi Zardes, who will both look to do so with new clubs.
Martínez joined Inter Miami CF on January 18 after spending the first six years of his MLS career with Atlanta United, scoring 98 times in 134 games. With two goals in his next 25 games, Martínez would become the fastest player in league history to reach 100 career regular season goals. The current record is held by Bradley Wright-Phillips, who reached 100 career regular season goals in 159 games.
The players to score at least 100 regular season goals in MLS history:
This offseason, Zardes moved to the Lone Star State, joining Austin FC after scoring 10 times in 2022 with Columbus and Colorado. The product of LA Galaxy’s academy system needs just three more goals to hit 100 in his MLS career.
Road Warriors CF Montréal Look to Continue Their Winning Ways
After a sensational 2022 season that saw the club finish with 65 points, including an 11-4-2 away record, CF Montréal opens the 2023 season on the road against Josef Martínez and Inter Miami CF on Saturday, Feb. 25 (7:30 p.m. ET, MLS Season Pass).
Montréal won each of its final seven road matches during the 2022 season and with a victory against Inter Miami CF in the season opener, they would become the first team in MLS history to win eight consecutive regular season road matches. Only two other road winning streaks have lasted seven games in MLS history – the 1999 D.C. United and the 1997-98 LA Galaxy, which both included shootouts.
The longest regular season road winning streaks in MLS history:
Defending Champs LAFC Look to Stay Spotless in Season-Opening Matches
Defending MLS Cup champion LAFC kicks off their title defense against the LA Galaxy at the historic Rose Bowl on Saturday, Feb. 25 (9:30 p.m. ET, MLS Season Pass) in front of an anticipated MLS record crowd.
LAFC will look to continue an impressive streak in season openers, as the club owns a 5-0-0 record in season-opening matches in its brief, but storied history. The only other team in league history to have won six consecutive season-opening matches was FC Dallas from 2012-17.
The longest winning streaks in season-opening matches in MLS history:
Top Goal Scorers on Matchday 1
In the club’s first match of the 2022 season, LAFC’s Carlos Vela recorded his third career hat trick while becoming the fifth different player in MLS history to score a hat trick in his club’s first match of a season.
The players with a hat trick in their club’s season-opening match:
MLS Single-Game Attendance Record
Defending MLS Cup champion LAFC will face off against crosstown rival LA Galaxy in front of what is expected to be an MLS-record crowd of more than 75,000 fans at the iconic Rose Bowl at 9:30 p.m. ET on Saturday (MLS Season Pass). The two Los Angeles teams will look to break the previous standalone single-game attendance record of 74,479 fans, which was set in Charlotte FC’s inaugural home match last season (March 5, 2022).
The largest standalone match attendances in MLS history:
