MLS Power Rankings: San Diego FC is legit in the West, MNUFC isn't | OneFootball

Welcome to the Western Conference halfway-ish rankings of the MLS 2025 season based on PIRlo and xStandings.

PIRlo (Player Index Rating locator) is an all-encompassing rating system for players utilizing over 50 stable metrics in the three key phases of the game: attacking, defending, and passing. xStandings takes those player ratings and boils them down into an overall team score. The team score is based only on players who play 30 minutes per match for all the club's matches, so in this ranking only the players with 630 or more league minutes played post Matchday 21 are involved in a team xStandings score.

The clubs are ranked 1-15 by their xStandings score. The larger the difference between a team's xStandings and their conference position lets us know whether they are overachieving or underachieving based on what the players' ratings are telling xStandings. This is explained in the Buy/ Sell/ Hold section of each team's analysis.

Each team's conference position is determined by their points per match instead of their current standings in the conference table, as the Club World Cup has some teams playing four fewer matches than their counterparts.

Lastly, you will see the PIRlo 300+ and Honorable Mention sections related to the players. We have found a direct correlation to the number of 300+ player PIRlo ratings on a team to the winning percentage of a team. Basically, the more 300+ players you have in a squad, the higher you sit in the league table. For reference, there was one player in MLS in 2024 that scored a 400+ PIRlo rating (Riqui Puig) and typically, across all leagues in the world, a 300+ PIRlo rating will put a player in the top 8-10% of all players in that league.

Note: Data from Wednesday night's two MLS matches is not included.

On to the rankings!

1) San Diego FC

PIRlo Conference xStanding: 1 (251.73)Conference Position: 2Points Per Match: 1.86Goal Difference: +15

PIRlo 300+ Rated Players: 3

Tverskov (#5 MLS Overall, 342.18 PIRlo Rating), H. Lozano (#11, 330.61), Dreyer (#13, 319.41)

PIRlo Honorable Mention Players (280-299 Rating): 1

Valakari (#53, 280.82)

Buy/ Sell/ Hold:

Buy. This club looks uniquely positioned to make a playoff run.

Notes:

This is an old song in MLS; an expansion club comes in and experiences instant success. We’ve seen it with Austin, St. Louis and Charlotte. But then they fall short in the playoffs, and come back to Earth the next season. Therefore, skepticism will reign until otherwise proven wrong. Despite that, San Diego has put together one of the best teams in MLS, and they could be the one to break the expansion club postseason curse.

2) Los Angeles FC

Los Angeles Football Club v Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Kevork Djansezian/GettyImages

PIRlo Conference xStanding: 2 (246.95)Conference Position: 5Points Per Match: 1.53Goal Difference: +6

PIRlo 300+ Rated Players: 1

Bouanga (#24, 303.50)

PIRlo Honorable Mention Players (280-299 Rating): 1

Hollingshead (#42, 287.49)

Buy/ Sell/ Hold:

Buy. The goal difference doesn’t jump off the page. That being said, the overall quality of the roster does.

Notes:

It wouldn’t shock if this is the Western Conference representative in the MLS Cup. This is an organization committed to winning and putting a great club on the pitch. Despite the obvious gap in quality in the CWC, this is a formidable MLS club.

3) Vancouver Whitecaps

PIRlo Conference xStanding: 3 (244.88)Conference Position: 1Points Per Match: 1.90Goal Difference: +13

PIRlo 300+ Rated Players: 2

A. Ahmed (#9, 332.72), Berhalter (#18, 309.06)

PIRlo Honorable Mention Players (280-299 Rating): 3

P. Vite (#29, 299.47), Laborda (#33, 297.29), T. Blackmon (#35, 294.00)

Buy/ Sell/ Hold:

Hold. xStandings believes they are playing a bit above their head. Goal difference agrees.

Notes: Still, this is starting to look like a consistently winning club. Personally, I’m buying Vancouver in the MLS Cup. There’s a ton of talent in that club with a top-five player group that can challenge anyone in MLS. The recruitment is rock solid, and the development is catching up. There’s real smoke around Vancouver.

4) Seattle Sounders

PIRlo Conference xStanding: 4 (240.72)Conference Position: 6Points Per Match: 1.50Goal Difference: +2

PIRlo 300+ Rated Players: 1

C. Roldán (#3, 349.43)

PIRlo Honorable Mention Players (280-299 Rating): 2

A. Rusnák (#50, 282.06), Á. Roldán (#51, 281.41)

Buy/ Sell/ Hold:

Buy. There’s a clear top 4 in the West and Seattle is in that group, albeit at the back of it.

Notes:

Carlos Roldan is probably the most underrated star in MLS. He’s been a metronome in MLS and a staple of keeping Seattle consistently good to great. This is a club that could shove at the end of the season and be a dangerous opponent in the playoffs.

5) San Jose Earthquakes

San Jose Earthquakes v Austin FC: Quarter Finals - 2025 U.S. Open Cup Championship | Eakin Howard/GettyImages

PIRlo Conference xStanding: 5 (232.7)Conference Position: 7Points Per Match: 1.33Goal Difference: +8

PIRlo 300+ Rated Players: 1

C. Espinoza (#10, 332.20)

PIRlo Honorable Mention Players (280-299 Rating): 2

C. Arango (#36, 292.62), D. Jones (#43, 284.40)

Buy/ Sell/ Hold:

Buy. What a turnaround. The data shows the arrow pointing up. Incredible.

Notes:

Usually, these notes write themselves. This one, though, is just a tad nuts considering everything going on with the club. Jon Fisher needs so much cash, he’s selling the club, which is a massive win for both the city of San Jose and the Earthquakes. And the long-held idea of the recruitment of young players and smart transfer purchases has positioned San Jose to have one of the great turnarounds in MLS history. They hit rock bottom last season, but their rebound is astonishing.

6) Houston Dynamo

PIRlo Conference xStanding: 6 (229.74)Conference Position: 9Points Per Match: 1.24Goal Difference: -5

PIRlo 300+ Rated Players: 2

J. McGlynn (#14, 316.80), N. Lodeiro (#20, 309.10)

PIRlo Honorable Mention Players (280-299 Rating): 0

Buy/ Sell/ Hold:

Buy. Houston has put together a very good roster. This looks like a dangerous but flawed bottom seed playoff team.

Notes:

During the 2024 season, Hector Herrera was PIRlo’s second-ranked MLS player (Puig was #1 and Messi was #3). His loss is insurmountable for any club, but Houston has done a good job weathering the storm. In the sense of a much-awaited breakout, just be happy Jack McGlynn is the shining star we had always hoped he would become.

7) Los Angeles Galaxy

PIRlo Conference xStanding: 7 (221.86)Conference Position: 15Points Per Match: .57Goal Difference: -20

PIRlo 300+ Rated Players: 1

M. Reus (#26, 302.09)

PIRlo Honorable Mention Players (280-299 Rating): 0

Buy/ Sell/ Hold:

Buy. In the sense that there is no way that they are this poor.

Notes:

This is just a stunning fall on the surface. But, much like Houston, when you lose a metronomic talent like Riqui Puig, who was the only player in 2024 MLS that eclipsed a 400+ PIRlo rating and was hands down the best player in the league, that’s impossible to replace. Combine that with Gabriel Pec’s fall back to earth after winning the MLS Newcomer of the Year (PIRlo agreed ranking Pec as the best newcomer and the #6 overall player in MLS last season) and you have the recipe for what has become a lost season.

8) Real Salt Lake

Real Salt Lake v LA Galaxy | Chris Gardner/GettyImages

PIRlo Conference xStanding: 8 (212.47)Conference Position: 11Points Per Match: 1.10Goal Difference: -8

PIRlo 300+ Rated Players: 0

PIRlo Honorable Mention Players (280-299 Rating): 0

Buy/ Sell/ Hold:

Buy. Look for a late push at the playoff picture once Diego Luna gets back in the fold.

Notes:

Real Salt Lake recruited some really bright footballing minds to revamp their project, and, to a degree, it’s looking like it’s working. While not being a first-choice destination for players coming to MLS, RSL has done a very good job of recruitment and development. Let’s see if the new ownership group maintains this trajectory.

9) Portland Timbers

PIRlo Conference xStanding: 9 (209.54)Conference Position: 4Points Per Match: 1.65Goal Difference: +2

PIRlo 300+ Rated Players: 0

PIRlo Honorable Mention Players (280-299 Rating): 2

da Costa (#37, 292.15), S. Moreno (#49, 282.17)

Buy/ Sell/ Hold:

Sell. Goal Difference has them as the #6/#7 playoff seed currently. xStandings sees regression to that range as well.

Notes:

Banked points are banked points. While Portland has done a good job so far of getting results, everything is telling us this is a club that could falter down the line. A long playoff push seems, at this point, unlikely.

10) Minnesota United

PIRlo Conference xStanding: 10 (207.55)Conference Position: 3Points Per Match: 1.76Goal Difference: +11

PIRlo 300+ Rated Players: 0

PIRlo Honorable Mention Players (280-299 Rating): 0

Buy/ Sell/ Hold:

Sell. The goal difference is shiny. This may be Cincinnati-lite of the Western Conference (xStandings doesn’t like them, but GD does).

Notes:

The individual player ratings don’t jump off the page and the play style in Minnesota may be the culprit. Wyscout’s advanced metrics don’t see as large of a gap between their current point total and their expected points as xStandings does- seeing United as overperforming by around 5 points. While the points are banked already, this isn’t a club that looks like it will make a long postseason run.

11) Sporting Kansas City

PIRlo Conference xStanding: 11 (203.44)Conference Position: 12Points Per Match: 1.10Goal Difference: -5

PIRlo 300+ Rated Players: 0

PIRlo Honorable Mention Players (280-299 Rating): 0

Buy/ Sell/ Hold:

Hold. They seem properly rated by all metrics.

Notes:

The once uber stable club has undergone significant changes over the past 365 days. The question becomes, coming on the heels of not coming close to competing for the conference regular season crown for some time, where the recruitment and development comes from and can the club change tact quickly after so many years under the same management and front office setup.

12) St. Louis City

St. Louis CITY SC v Orlando City | Bill Barrett/ISI Photos/GettyImages

PIRlo Conference xStanding: 12 (194.28)Conference Position: 14Points Per Match: .71Goal Difference: -13

PIRlo 300+ Rated Players: 0

PIRlo Honorable Mention Players (280-299 Rating): 0

Buy/ Sell/ Hold:

Hold. Everything is telling us that this is their true level.

Notes:

St. Louis came into the league like they were shot out of a cannon. Unfortunately, they haven’t been able to replicate that. This was always going to be a club-building exercise. Whether the recruitment and development trend up will say a lot about where SLCFC ends up in the next few seasons.

13) Austin FC

PIRlo Conference xStanding: 13 (194.04)Conference Position: 8Points Per Match: 1.30Goal Difference: -8

PIRlo 300+ Rated Players: 0

PIRlo Honorable Mention Players (280-299 Rating): 0

Buy/ Sell/ Hold:

Sell. While the West has two distinct groupings, all data is showing this is a club playing over their head.

Notes:

The West isn’t deep this season; it’s top-heavy. This is a club that can theoretically make the playoffs, but making any noise in said playoffs seems highly unlikely. Another club that came into the league and created buzz, let’s see where the foundations of the club end up. Potentially, this is a monster MLS club considering the talent pool in Texas and the resources they have at their disposal.

14) FC Dallas

PIRlo Conference xStanding: 14 (191.64)Conference Position: 13Points Per Match: 1.05Goal Difference: -10

PIRlo 300+ Rated Players: 0

PIRlo Honorable Mention Players (280-299 Rating): 0

Buy/ Sell/ Hold:

Hold. The metrics and the record match.

Notes:

Dallas is arguably the best club in MLS at developing talent (We see you, Philly). The sale of Jesus Ferriera, who PIRlo loved in 2024 but also thought should be moved into a more playmaking role, was a head-scratcher. The acquisition of Lucho Acosta was supposed to replace that, but the MLS great has been slightly above average rather than a match-winner in his first season in Dallas. We will have a breakdown of Acosta’s season coming very soon.

15) Colorado Rapids

PIRlo Conference xStanding: 15 (181.59)Conference Position: 10Points Per Match: 1.24Goal Difference: -6

PIRlo 300+ Rated Players: 1

Mihailović (#23, 303.79)

PIRlo Honorable Mention Players (280-299 Rating): 0

Buy/ Sell/ Hold:

Sell. The Goal Difference is telling us they could make a late push for the playoffs over a few of the better clubs in the second tier of the West. xStandings doesn’t see that happening.

Notes:

In 2024, Cole Bassett (#9 MLS Overall in 2024) played Batman to Mihailović’s Robin. This season, Mihailović is still playing Robin while Cole has regressed into a character from… a bang average DC character from a bang average DC movie? In terms of career arcs, Cole’s has to be one of the strangest. We will dissect this phenomenon in an upcoming article.