The goals during Saturday’s Week 24 slate weren’t just coming at a breakneck pace. They were also arriving in historic proportions across Major League Soccer’s 27-year history.
A historic day
The 13-game Saturday slate produced 57 goals – 11 more than has ever been scored on a single day in league history:
- Breaks the previous record of 46 goals in a single day (Decision Day in both 2017 and 2020).
- Twelve different clubs reached the three-goal mark.
- Seven different games featured at least five goals, the most games with 5+ goals on a single day.
- There were 54 goals scored between the first goal of CHI-CLT and the last goal of POR-DAL, averaging a goal every 6 minutes over those 5 hours.
MLS Week 24
Week 24 featured 20 matches and 79 goals in total:
- Tuesday: 10 goals
- Wednesday: 9 goals
- Friday: 3 goals
- Saturday: 57 goals
- The week averaged 4 goals per game
The match week started with a 5-4 Colorado Rapids win at the New York Red Bulls last Tuesday and never let up. Saturday's goal count was paced by Lorenzo Insigne’s first tally for Toronto FC, an incredible solo effort by Gareth Bale with LAFC, a hat trick by Colorado Rapids striker Gyasi Zardes and more.
None of the Eastern Conference’s top-four teams and just one of the Western Conference’s top-four teams won (Supporters’ Shield leaders LAFC). Parity and goals – two of MLS’s defining traits.
All we’re hoping is that players saved some goals for the 2022 MLS All-Star Game presented by Target on Aug. 10 at Allianz Field against Liga MX’s All-Stars (8:30 pm ET | ESPN, Univision in US; TSN, TVA Sports in Canada). We’re not doubting them, at least.
