2024 MLS Golden Boot Betting Odds

The competition for the MLS Golden Boot is always an interesting and unpredictable affair.

The league has been graced by top-quality forwards over the years who’ve increased the competition for the Golden Boot, thanks in part to the fact that MLS heavily favors attacking play.

Many strikers and forwards have flourished because of the league’s free-flowing, attacking nature. That’s why many stars from Europe’s top-flight leagues choose to play in America at the latter stages of their career.

This season, we’re expecting an extremely close Golden Boot race. The likes of Josef Martinez, Carlos Vela, Raúl Ruidíaz, and Kacper Przybyłko are the Golden Boot favorites.

There’s also always the chance that an unknown young talent—or a last-minute, big-money signing—could emerge from nowhere and stun the rest of the league.

Here’s our 2022 MLS Golden Boot betting preview.

How Is The Winner Decided?

The league’s outright top goalscorer during the regular season wins the MLS Golden Boot.

In case two or more top scorers score the same number of goals, assists are used to break such ties, so it’s almost impossible for this award to be shared.

2022 MLS Golden Boot Betting Odds Report

The 2021 Golden Boot race was one of the tightest in MLS history. As many as five players were involved in the race heading into the final game of the season, and it was ultimately decided by the tightest of margins.

If last season’s Golden Boot race is anything to go by, then this season’s race is going to be equally exciting. We could even see someone hit the 30-goal mark for the first time since the 2019 season.

The Favorites

Carlos Vela – Carlos Vela is undoubtedly one of the best strikers in the league. However, 2021 was a really torrid season for the Mexican striker.

Injuries reduced his playing time and he only managed to play around half of Los Angeles FC’s games. As a result, LAFC struggled during the 2021 season.

Vela is still in his prime and can still score lots of goals. He scored 34 goals in the 2019 season and set a single-season MLS record. If he can manage to stay fit this season, then LAFC’s main man can torment the league’s defenders once again.

Josef Martinez – After missing the entire 2020 season after tearing his ACL, Josef Martinez was expected to struggle in his first season back. However, he still managed to score more than 10 league goals last season and helped Atlanta United to make the playoffs.

Since joining Atlanta United in 2017, the Venezuelan striker has scored more than 80 league goals for the Five Stripes and has been one of the most consistent players in the league.

He previously won the Golden Boot in 2018; he scored 31 goals that year, which was the previous MLS single-season record.

Martinez will be eager to get back to his pre-injury form, and the 2022 season may be the best opportunity for the Venezuelan striker to reintroduce himself to the league.

Raúl Ruidíaz – Raúl Ruidíaz was a major contender in last season’s Golden Boot race. He scored more than 15 goals in the regular season, which was his best goal return for the Sounders in his four-year stay at the club. Even more impressive was his goal-to-game ratio. He averaged a goal every 140 minutes; a return that many strikers would be proud of.

He still had a few injuries during the season, which hindered his chances of winning the golden boot. This time around, he’ll be hoping to go all the way and could be a great choice for many bettors.

Ola Kamara – D.C. United were below average last season, but the same can’t be said about Ola Kamara. The Norwegian forward was the only shining beacon in an utterly lackluster D.C. United side. He battled with Valentín Castellanos for the Golden Boot and even almost reached the 20-goal mark.

Kamara has had his fair share of injuries throughout his career but has managed to overcome them. Now, he’s experiencing a late-career resurgence. If D.C. United can find a way to balance their team, then Kamara can lead the side to greater heights.

Dániel Sallói – Sporting KC were impressive last season. One of their main stars was Dániel Sallói, who was the team’s leading scorer.

Unlike many of the other top scorers, Salloi isn’t the team’s designated penalty taker, meaning that his 16+ goal tally last season for the Wizards is even more impressive when compared to some of the league’s leading marksmen.

He’ll turn 26 in July and is yet to hit his prime. So if he chooses to stay with the Wizards, we can expect great things from the Hungarian striker.

The Contenders

Gonzalo Higuaín – Gonzalo Higuaín is probably the most decorated player in the league. He’s won multiple awards across Europe and was expected to have an easier time adjusting to life in America. But the Argentine has had a rough time and hasn’t been able to hit his previously expected heights.

In his first season with Inter Miami, he only managed to score 1 goal in 9 games, though he managed to better that tally by scoring 12+ goals during the 2021 season.

However, Inter Miami struggled for the majority of the season and ended up missing out on the playoffs, which is a major disappointment considering that more was expected from this exciting team.

So Higuaín will need to improve his output this season if he wants to lead Beckham’s side to MLS glory. Higuaín can definitely score goals. He previously topped the Serie A scoring charts during the 2015/16 season when he scored a record 36 league goals for Napoli.

Adam Buksa – Polish forward Adam Buksa was one of the New England Revolution’s standout players last season. He scored 16 goals during the regular season and helped his side win the Supporters Shield in record-breaking style.

He has a solid partnership with Argentine Gustavo Bou and has flourished under Bruce Arena’s management. If he stays with the Revs, as he’s expected to do, then he’ll definitely be a major contender for the 2022 Golden Boot.

Gustavo Bou – Gustavo Bou has also flourished under Bruce Arena’s system. He scored 15 goals last season, which was not only his best single-season output for the Revs but in his career as well. With Adam Buksa by his side, you can count on Bou to score plenty of goals this season as well.

Kacper Przybyłko – Przybyłko was one of the bookies’ Golden Boot favorites at the beginning of last season. He ended up scoring more than 10 league goals for Philadelphia Union and helped them reach the playoffs.

MLS Golden Boot Historical Winners

Season	MLS Golden Boot Winner	Team	No. Of Goals
2020	Diego Rossi	Los Angeles FC	14
2019	Carlos Vela	Los Angeles FC	34
2018	Josef Martínez	Atlanta United	31
2017	Nemanja Nikolić	Chicago Fire	24
2016	Bradley Wright-Phillips	New York Red Bulls	24
2015	Sebastian Giovinco	Toronto FC	22
2014	Bradley Wright-Phillips	New York Red Bulls	27
2013	Camilo Sanvezzo	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	22
2012	Chris Wondolowski	San Jose Earthquakes	27
2011	Dwayne De Rosario	D.C. United	16

How To Bet On 2024 MLS Golden Boot

If you want to bet on who will win the MLS Golden Boot, here are the steps that you need to follow:

Choose a sportsbook.
Go to the sports menu and click on soccer.
There will be a list of soccer leagues. Scroll down until you see MLS on that list.
Click on MLS betting and go to the futures tab.
Search for the “MLS 2022 Golden Boot Winner” market.
Select the forward/striker that you want to bet on.
Use the bet slip to enter your bet amount.
Confirm and place your bet.