The MLS is back for another season starting on Saturday, February 22. The LA Galaxy are the defending champions from last season as they beat the New York Red Bulls in the MLS Cup Final, but neither of those teams finished at the top of their respective conferences during the regular season. Once the league gets to the playoffs it becomes anyone’s game, but the regular season is a completely different animal and not all teams are equipped to stay atop the table for the distance. Los Angeles FC finished at the top of the Western Conference last season and now that the start of the new MLS season is right around the corner, it is time to see who has the best chance of topping the Western Conference for the 2025 season.
Western Conference League Winner (Regular Season)
Los Angeles FC +300: Los Angeles FC is coming into this season as the team with the best chance at finishing 1st in the Western Conference according to the oddsmakers. LAFC finished last season in 1st place in the Western Conference with 64 points from a 19-7-8 record. They also had the best goal differential in the Western Conference at +20, scoring 63 goals in their 34 matches and allowing 43 goals. Last year marked the end of a dynasty for LAFC as they were the dominant force in the MLS over the last few seasons and lost a lot of their key pieces prior to last season starting, but they rebuilt very well throughout the season with the pieces they brought in and ended up topping the Western Conference. They did not win the MLS Cup or the Supporters’ Shield, but they did come away with a trophy as they won the US Open Cup. LAFC is still going to be a force in the MLS this season as they continue to bring in the proper players to keep this team competitive, but they did lose 2 key pieces in the offseason and that will have a negative impact on the team. They lost their right winger Cristian Olivera and brought in Yaw Yeboah to replace him, but Yeboah did not get a lot of playing time at Columbus last season. They also lost their attacking midfielder Mateusz Bogusz who was a key piece in their attack last season, and they did not bring in a suitable replacement for him either. The team is also lacking a lot in midfield depth so that is going to cause problems for them controlling the midfield in their matches. LAFC is still going to be a top team in the Western Conference this season, but they were supposed to take a step back last season and did not, this could be the year where they really feel the impact of the quality they have lost. There is no real value in LAFC to finish 1st place in the Western Conference at this price.
LA Galaxy +400: The LA Galaxy are coming into this season as the team with the next best chance at finishing 1st place in the Western Conference according to the oddsmakers. The Galaxy finished in 2nd place in the Western Conference last season with 64 points from a 19-7-8 record. They had the same number of points and the exact same record as LAFC who finished in 1st place, but the Galaxy lost the top spot on goal differential by 1 goal. They finished with a +19 goal differential and did have a stronger attack than LAFC as they scored 69 goals in their 34 matches, but their defense was also much weaker as they allowed 50 goals. LA Galaxy did not top the Western Conference in the end, but they were the best team at the end of the season and ended up winning the MLS Cup with an incredible run in the playoffs. They were outscoring opponents by a lot near the end of the season, and they have retained a lot of that talent in their potent attack. They did lose 1 key piece to their attack in Dejan Joveljic who led the team in goals scored last season, but they brought in Christian Ramirez to replace him. Ramirez did not start many matches at Columbus last season, but he came off the bench a lot and was still 3rd on the Crew for goals scored so he is going to be playing with something to prove this year. They also brought in Marco Reus last summer who turned out to be an integral part of their midfield and really helped them on their run when they got very hot toward the end of the season. They also have a lot of depth in both their midfield and on defense so they are once again going to be a big threat in the league this season. They are the defending MLS Cup champions and will be looking to do it again, but they are also going to be pushing for the Supporters’ Shield this season after seeing Inter Miami break the all-time points record last year. Losing the top spot in the Western Conference to their rival also left a bad taste in their mouth so LA Galaxy will be looking to return to the top of the league after their rival LAFC has been running the show the last few years. The LA Galaxy have both the motivation and the squad to continue their dominance in the MLS this season. There is a lot of value in them to finish in 1st place in the Western Conference at this price.
Seattle Sounders +700: Seattle is coming into this season as the team with the next best chance at finishing 1st place in the Western Conference according to the oddsmakers. Seattle finished last season in 4th place in the Western Conference with 57 points from a 16-9-9 record. They had a +16 goal differential and had the best defense in the league as they only allowed 35 goals in their 34 matches, but their attack was not very strong with 51 goals scored. They have had a great defense over the last few years and that defense has kept them very competitive in the league as they are always considered a top team, but they have not actually come close to finishing at the top of the league. Their defense gets them a lot of results throughout the season to stay in the top half of the Western Conference and it also makes them a very dangerous team in the playoffs, but their weaker attack has been a problem during the regular season as they cannot keep up with the stronger teams and will also drop points in matches they should win easily. Seattle is also due to take a big step back this season as they have been consistent in the league with a lot of veteran players, but now they have lost some of that talent and still have a much older squad. They brought in some players to improve their already great defense, but they have not made many moves to bring in impact players to improve their attack. Seattle will still be a competitive team in the league with a very good defense, but this attack is going to continue struggling to score goals in their matches. Seattle is also in dire need of a rebuild with a lot of their key players being much older in age and nearing the ends of their careers. They already lost a key veteran presence in Raul Ruidiaz as well and this will likely be a transition year for Seattle as they try to get some younger players in the squad. There is no real value in Seattle to finish 1st place in the Western Conference at this price.
Houston Dynamo +800: Houston is coming into this season as the team with the next best chance at finishing 1st place in the Western Conference according to the oddsmakers. Houston finished last season in 5th place in the Western Conference with 54 points from a 15-9-10 record. They only had a +8 goal differential as their defense was very good with 39 goals allowed in their 34 matches, but their attack was not strong with 47 goals scored which was the 3rd lowest in the Western Conference last year. They also lost a lot of key pieces and those are going to be tough holes for them to fill. They lost Sebastian Ferreira who was 2nd on the team in goals scored with 5, Adalberto Carrasquilla who was 2nd on the team in assists, and they lost Hector Herrera who was the captain of the team and really was the driving force in the midfield. They still have their leading scorer Ibrahim Aliyu, but their attack was so weak last season that he led the team in goals scored for the season with 6. They did bring in a solid midfielder from Philadelphia, Jack McGlynn, but there is still going to be a lot of new pieces in this starting XI so they will need to figure out what works best for them. They could get off to a much slower start this season as they figure things out with their new lineup and that is going to hurt them in the long run. Houston is not going to be much of a threat to be a top team in the Western Conference during the regular season this year so there is not a lot of value in them to finish in 1st place in the Western Conference at this price.
RecommendationWinning the regular season in the MLS is a very different animal than winning the MLS Cup as leading the table requires a lot of consistency for a long period of time. Many teams have the talent to win the MLS Cup by making a run in the playoffs once they are in, but only few teams in the league have the potential to top their conference for the season and take a shot at the Supporters’ Shield. The Western Conference has a lot more competition with some very good teams in the mix, but very few of those teams actually have the quality and the depth to be a top team in the conference all season. LAFC has topped the Western Conference 2 of the last 3 years in the regular season and there have not been many teams that could challenge them, but now the LA Galaxy is back with a very competitive team that are also the defending MLS Cup champions so they are going to have the motivation to put themselves back on top of the league over their rivals, and the Galaxy are also a franchise with a lot of pride due to the success they have had in the MLS throughout the years. The LA Galaxy at +400 is the best option for a team to finish 1st place in the Western Conference for the regular season of the MLS.
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