2025 MLS MVP Odds: Lionel Messi the heavy favorite

The Major League Soccer Most Valuable Player Award — named for the league's legendary striker Landon Donovan as of 2015 — is the league's most coveted individual award and has some big names on its winners list.

Lionel Messi, arguably the best footballer in history, won it last season and could become the second player in league history to win the award twice after midfielder Preki won it in 1997 and 2003.

But who else is in the running to win the MLS Landon Donovan MVP Award for the 2025 season? Here, we'll take a look at the odds and break down the favorites' chances.

MLS Landon Donovan MVP Award Odds

Lionel Messi (Inter Miami)	-138
Luis Suarez (Inter Miami)	+550
Christian Benteke (DC United)	+1000
Denis Bouanga (Los Angeles FC)	+1600
Emmanuel Latte Lath (Atlanta United)	+1600
Tai Baribo (Philadelphia Union)	+2000
Brian White (Vancouver Whitecaps)	+2500
Daniel Gazdag (Philadelphia Union)	+2500
Evander Ferreira (FC Cincinnati)	+2500
Ryan Gauld (Vancouver Whitecaps)	+2500

Inter Miami superstar attacker Lionel Messi, winner of the 2024 MVP Award after scoring 20 goals with 11 assists in just 1,489 minutes in his first full MLS season, is favored (-138) to win the award again in 2025.

If he wins this season's MVP, Messi would become the first-ever MLS player to win it twice in a row. He averaged 1.21 goals per 90 minutes and 0.66 assists per 90 minutes in 2024, and through two games played in 2025, he's averaging 0.50 goals and 1.00 assists per match.

Second in the betting is Messi's Inter Miami teammate, Luis Suarez (+550). The Liverpool and Barcelona legend has one goal and four assists in four matches this season, and he's coming off a year in which he scored 20 goals in 1,918 minutes.

Christian Benteke, the DC United striker who led MLS in goals last season with 23, is third in the betting (+1000) and is the final player with odds of 10/1 or shorter to win the award. None of his teammates scored more than six goals last season, proving how valuable his production was to his team.

Two players are tied for the fourth-shortest odds at +1600: Los Angeles FC attacker Denis Bouanga and Atlanta United striker Emmanuel Latte Lath.

Bouanga has scored 20 goals in each of his two full MLS seasons, and he led LAFC to win MLS Cup soon after he joined the club in 2022. In four matches in 2025, he has yet to score or assist.

Latte Lath became the most expensive signing in MLS history this offseason, and he's already begun to deliver on his transfer fee with four goals in five appearances.

Philadelphia Union forward Tai Baribo is sixth in the betting (+2000) after a red-hot start to the season. He has six goals in 315 minutes across four appearances, leading his team to first in the Eastern Conference through five games.

Four players are tied at 25/1 to win the MVP Award: Vancouver Whitecaps striker Brian White, Union attacking midfielder Daniel Gazdag, FC Cincinnati attacking midfielder Evander Ferreira, and Whitecaps attacking midfielder Ryan Gauld.

Further back, tied at 33/1, are Cincinnati striker Kevin Denkey, New York City FC forward Alonso Martinez, LA Galaxy winger Gabriel Pec, Colorado Rapids attacking midfielder Djordje Mihailovic, and Chicago Fire striker Hugo Cuypers.

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Odds displayed within this article were correct at the time of writing and are subject to change.