With the MLS season kicking off in just over two weeks, here is a look at where teams stand entering 2025 campaign

Hello, 2025.

This has been a memorable offseason. Genuinely, it has been record-breaking in every sense — incoming and outgoing transfers, record fees for clubs across the league, blockbuster intra-league trades, and more.

It has been a rollercoaster, and we're still over two weeks away from competitive MLS action, too, meaning there is still so much more that could happen ahead of the start of the campaign.

Over the past two months, though, there has been one common trait shared across the league — ambition, at least by most teams.

The San Jose Earthquakes are the perfect example, as are the New England Revolution. Both teams are set to field relatively unrecognizable teams on opening day due to roster turnover. Then, there's a step further as shown with Atlanta United. The smashed the MLS transfer record for $22M striker Emmanuel Latte-Lath while also bringing back former club star Miguel Almiron from Newcastle United.

On the other end, other teams like Toronto FC have yet to even open up their wallet.

With just weeks away from kickoff, it's now time to start seriously evaluating where clubs stand. It's a brand-new season, with lots of new rules, including continental competition participation. The 2024 MLS Cup champions in the LA Galaxy remain on top of the list in preseason at least, while Lionel Messi's Inter Miami are still recovering from their shocking Round 1 Playoff exit last November.

Which club leads the pack, and who is falling short of expectations? GOAL presents the first edition of 2025 MLS Power Rankings.

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Getty30Toronto FC

Someway, somehow, Lorenzo Insigne is still a TFC player. They haven't used an offseason buyout, and they didn't transfer him away from the club in January. This ultimately has to mean they're planning around him in 2025 — which does not feel like a smart choice.

Factor in their incredibly poor campaign last season, and their lack of transfer business this offseason, and there is just nothing to be excited about.

The club brought in Robin Fraser to lead their touchline as their new manager after the departure of John Herdman in November, and even then, it just doesn't move the needle.

Advertisement29D.C. United

D.C. offloaded Matai Akinmboni to Bournemouth in the Premier League, which is a brilliant move for both the club and the U.S. youth international. However, when the only positive around your club over the offseason is selling a player abroad, that's not great.

The club also, someway, somehow, managed to offload DP Mateusz Klich to Atlanta United on a season-long loan, but they're still paying his salary in a scenario that does not make any sense whatsoever for them.

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Reports surfaced earlier this week that they're also moving on from bright homegrown prospect Ted Ku-DiPietro, who was a fan favorite.

Not the best outlook for a storied franchise.

28FC Dallas

FC Dallas had a selling offseason. They made a lot of money in that sense, which is great from a club standpoint. Offloading Alan Velasco, Jesus Ferreira and Paul Arriola for nearly $15 million is stellar business — however, there's a rule in sports where if you get rid of players, you should probably replace them.

And, well, FCD have yet to do that.

They brought in Anderson Julio from RSL, and that's a rather similar body to Arriola, so we can give them that — but not much else has happened. It's going to be incredibly hard to compete if they don't find replacements for Ferreira and Velasco soon, while star forward Petar Musa's production will likely go down too without support as well.

Getty Images Sport27Philadelphia Union

Getting rid of Jim Curtin still feels like a very, very poor move.

Since his departure, Philly has appointed former St. Louis CITY SC manager Bradley Carnell, but they've relatively failed to bolster their roster after an incredibly poor 2024.

They signed Serbian midfielder Jovan Lukic to a multi-year contract and brought in defender Ian Glavinovich on a season-long loan, but other than that, their under-performing XI from 2024 is set to return in a few weeks time.

Factor in the club also sold U.S. international Jack McGlynn to the Houston Dynamo, and they're down another body. The positive spin, though, is they earned up to $3.4M for his services, which is brilliant considering it's pure profit due to his Homegrown status.