MLS All-Star XI: Heavyweights and Rising Stars Unite
The MLS All-Star XI has landed, and it looks every bit as heavyweight as the league promised.
A blend of fan votes, media input, and player backing has produced a side packed with storylines: rising prospects, returning veterans, and global icons sharing the same stage.
Between the posts, Nashville SC’s Brian Schwake gets the nod, a reward for his sharp rise and steady hands. In front of him, the back line carries both edge and experience: Anthony Markanich of Minnesota United at left back, Andy Najar of Nashville SC on the right, and a central pairing of Chicago Fire’s Mbekezeli Mbokazi alongside Tim Ream, now of Charlotte FC.
Ream’s inclusion jumps off the page. This is his second All-Star selection, but the first in 15 years. He last made the team in 2011 with New York Red Bulls, and now returns as a veteran centerpiece for the host city’s club, anchoring the defense in what feels like a full-circle moment.
Sebastian Berhalter of Vancouver Whitecaps sits at the base of midfield, tasked with shielding that back four and starting attacks. Ahead of him, the spotlight turns to the league’s new wave and one of its established stars. Real Salt Lake’s Zavier Gozo, already linked with a potential move to Aston Villa, claims one of the attacking midfield spots. Hany Mukhtar, Nashville’s creative heartbeat, takes the other, giving this XI a sharp, inventive core.
Up front, the forward line reads like a marketing department’s dream and a defender’s nightmare: Chicago Fire striker Hugo Cuypers, LAFC’s Son Heung-Min, and Inter Miami’s Leo Messi. For Son, this is a first All-Star appearance, something that would have felt inevitable had he arrived in MLS earlier last summer. For Messi, it is another selection that underlines his status as the league’s marquee name.
Six players make the All-Star cut for the first time: Gozo, Son, Markanich, Schwake, Cuypers, and Mbokazi. Their emergence gives this XI a fresh edge, wrapped around the authority of names like Ream, Mukhtar, and Messi.
The All-Star stage, though, still carries the shadow of last year’s controversy. Messi and his Inter Miami teammate Jordi Alba were both selected but never showed up for the game, a snub that forced MLS to act. The league handed each a one-match suspension and has made it clear that the rule stands.
“Per league rules, any player who does not participate in the All-Star Game without prior approval from the league is ineligible to compete in their club’s next match,” MLS said at the time. The message is simple: if you’re picked, you play — or you sit out for your club.
Once again, MLS’s best will face the top talents from Liga MX. The Mexican league has yet to reveal its own squad; last year, those names dropped in mid-June, about a month before kickoff. This time, the scene shifts to Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, where the two leagues will collide on July 29.
A star-studded XI, a host city veteran in Ream, a rising teenager in Gozo, and the looming presence of Messi under stricter league scrutiny — the stage is set. Now it’s up to the players to show whether this All-Star team is just strong on paper, or ready to dominate under the lights.
