MLS Supporters Shield Trophy- An Accomplishment with Two Faces
The 29th season of MLS is upon us. Lionel Messi and his Inter Miami team open the season as the defending MLS Supporters Shield winners. This trophy was created to award the winner with the best record/points total during the regular season. It was started by fans who felt that postseason results should not totally negate what a team's body of work over a period establishes on a week-to-week basis. The trophy, however, has proven to be a double-edged sword more often than not.
In the 29 seasons in which the trophy winner was recognized, eight times did the winner go on to win the MLS Championship. Outside of that the regular season points champion failed to win the ultimate prize. All the Supporters Shield winners who failed to win the MLS Cup did no worse than reaching the semifinals. There are only two occasions where the season points leader fell in the first round starting with the Philadelphia Union in 2020. The other occurred last year when Lionel Messi and Inter Milan not only won the shield but broke the record for most points in attaining it with 74 points. However, a first-round exit was quite bittersweet for the world's greatest player.
Yet, unlike other participation trophies, the Supporters Shield Foundation lies with MLS Supporters. It does have value. It does give the winner the top seed in the postseason which normally is a tangible advantage. The popularity of the pursuit of the Shield not only resonated in MLS but also with Lionel Messi, as a world figure, by capturing this trophy caught the attention of FIFA who decided to add Inter Miami to the 2025 World Club Cup as the other MLS representative at the expense of MLS champion Los Angeles Galaxy.
The Supporters Shield did not exist when MLS began in 1996. A fan campaign started the ball rolling. In 1997, soccer fan Nick Lawrus had an idea of a Supporters ‘Scudetto.” MLS committees changed the name to Supporters Shield but inner fighting killed the proposal. Sam Pierron tried to restore the idea of awarding a trophy to the regular season winner. MLS did not see it as worth funding. Pierron, through fundraisers, raised money from MLS club supporters. An Art student made a chevron trophy, covered in sterling silver sheet metal and given to D.C. United and Raul Diaz Arce, Jaime Moreno, and Marco Etcheverry, who along with the Los Angeles Galaxy and stars like Mauricio Cienfuegos in 1998, Alexi Lalas in 2002, Landon Donovan in 2010, and David Beckham in 2011, are tied with the most Supporters Shields with four each.
In 2006 the USSF decided to include the Supporters Shield winner along with the MLS Cup winner to represent MLS in the CONCACAF Champions Cup. The trophies' significance grew with supporter cultures popping up around the league and in 2010 the MLS Supporters Summit brought forth the idea of a re-design of the Shield. I support the Shield Scarf Drive, which sold 2000 scarves and raised funds in the amount of $18,000. This trophy was now a mainstay until 2020 on the force of the supporting fan base who often had to take action to improve the status of the Supporters Shield.
The Covid-era was another example when it served as the catalyst for the MLS decision not to award the Supporters Shield as fans were not able to attend games. The league felt the spirit and passion that the trophy symbolized over a season was absent as a result. This decision drew the ire of the MLS community which caused the league to reinstate the Supporters Shield. It would continue to be recognized by MLS but propped up by the supporters who met every need or challenge concerning it.
An interesting side note in 2020 saw the Philadelphia Union winning the Shield but not being able to take possession of the hardware due to a delay in shipping. A temporary one was fashioned using a repurposed Captain America shield with a vinyl cover from the club's fabricator shop. Now, in 2025, the Supporters Shield has grown to be an accomplishment that on its own represents success in an MLS season and is no different than the U.S. Cup or U.S. Open Cup are for teams who do not win the ultimate prize. A two-sided sword for sure but one with a positive edge thanks many to the people, its supporters.
