Not even four months after joining the MLS, Son Heung-min has already established himself as one of the best players in the league.
Just three games into his LAFC career, the South Korean star has been named the winner of the 2025 AT&T MLS Goal of the Year for a stunning free-kick against FC Dallas, his first goal in the league.
Son joined Los Angeles Football Club in August 2025 with the biggest transfer fee in the League’s history. After ten great years with Tottenham Hotspur, he came in and raised the profile of LAFC immediately.
LAFC signed him as a game-changer and he has proved to be just that since day one. The Goal of the Year award, voted on by fans at MLSSoccer.com, has been a part of the league since the 1996 inaugural season, and after just a few games, Son is on that list.
A statement start in Los Angeles
The award-winning goal came on August 23 at Toyota Stadium. In the sixth minute, Son curled a right-footed free kick over the wall and into the top corner. A stunner. And the reason why so many of us watch football.
It was a vintage Son moment: confident, clinical, and with flair. Since then he’s scored 10 goals and three assists in ten regular-season games, exactly what LAFC were looking for.
He’s also formed a lethal partnership with Denis Bouanga, and the two of them have become one of the league’s best attacking pairings. Son’s movement and creativity work well with Bouanga’s pace and directness, and the two have already created several important goals together. Together, they have made LAFC’s frontline one that is dynamic, unpredictable, and dangerous in many ways.
And if the free kick wasn’t enough, Son added another piece of history to his debut season. On September 14, he scored 53 seconds into the game against the San Jose Earthquakes, making it the third fastest goal in MLS history. It was a moment that summed up his impact: sharp, fearless and impossible to ignore.
Son’s Goal of the Year win is a huge deal. He’s not only the first LAFC player to win the award but also the first Asian player in MLS history to do so.
Head coach Steve Cherundolo said of his influence: “Two very simple words: intensity and quality.”
Son’s had a big start in LA with record-breaking goals, and a new partnership that’s changing the face of LAFC’s attack. Now the playoffs are underway and he could be on the verge of making even more history.