Who are the penalty takers and backup penalty takers for each of the 29 Major League Soccer clubs?
Penalty kicks are huge in soccer. Just 12 yards from the goal, a player will step up for arguably the best possible scoring chance in the match. Just the penalty taker and the goalkeeper.
With the addition of VAR (Video Assistant Referee) in the MLS, penalty opportunities are scrutinized even further. This often results in penalties being awarded that may not have been awarded in previous seasons.
So far in the 2022/2023 MLS season, 83 penalties have been given in 336 games. That’s an average of one penalty awarded every four matches.
Knowing who takes penalties for each MLS club can prove invaluable. It means that you will have the upper hand when it comes to selecting players for fantasy soccer contests or choosing which goalscorers to add to your soccer wager.
And that’s what we are here to help with. Here are the penalty takers for every MLS team. We’ve even thrown in the backup penalty takers for each team incase the main man is out of action.
MLS Penalty Takers & Backup Penalty Takers
| MLS Team | Penalty Taker | Expected Backup Taker |
| Atlanta United | Thiago Almada | Luiz Araújo |
| Austin FC | Sebastián Driussi | Emiliano Rigoni |
| Charlotte FC | Karol Swiderski | Scott Arfield |
| Chicago Fire FC | Xherdan Shaqiri | Rafael Czichos |
| FC Cincinnati | Luciano Acosta | Brandon Vazquez |
| Colorado Rapids | Connor Ronan | Diego Rubio, Braian Galván |
| Columbus Crew | Lucas Zelarayán | Lucas Zelarayán |
| D.C. United | Taxiarchis Fountas | Yamil Asad |
| FC Dallas | Alan Velasco | Jesús Ferreira |
| Houston Dynamo FC | Amine Bassi | Corey Baird |
| Sporting Kansas City | Alan Pulido | Erik Thommy, Gadi Kinda |
| Los Angeles Galaxy | Gastón Brugman | Riqui Puig |
| Los Angeles FC | Denis Bouanga | Carlos Vela |
| Inter Miami CF | Lionel Messi | Josef Martínez |
| Minnesota United | Luis Amarilla | Sang-bin Jeong |
| CF Montréal | Romell Quioto | Ariel Lassiter |
| Nashville SC | Hany Mukhtar | Luke Haakenson |
| New England Revolution | Carles Gil | Giacomo Vrioni |
| New York Red Bulls | Omir Fernandez | Elias Manoel |
| New York City FC | Santiago Rodríguez | Talles Magno |
| Orlando City | Facundo Torres | Ercan Kara |
| Philadelphia Union | Dániel Gazdag | Julián Carranza |
| Portland Timbers | Evander | Dairon Asprilla |
| Real Salt Lake | Pablo Ruiz | Braian Ojeda |
| San Jose Earthquakes | Cristian Espinoza | Jeremy Ebobisse |
| Seattle Sounders FC | Nicolás Lodeiro | Fredy Montero |
| St. Louis City SC | Eduard Löwen | Samuel Adeniran, Nicholas Gioacchini |
| Toronto FC | Federico Bernardeschi | Lorenzo Insigne |
| Vancouver Whitecaps FC | Ryan Gauld | Julian Gressel |
MLS Penalty Takers FAQ
Does Messi take Inter Miami’s penalties?
Now an Inter Miami player, Lionel Messi is the designated penalty taker. He takes penalties for his country, Argentina, and used to take Barcelona’s penalties too.
Who takes penalties for Philadelphia Union?
Dániel Gazdag is Philadelphia’s primary penalty taker. He has already taken eight penalties this season in the MLS, and has scored all eight.
Who is FC Cincinnati’s penalty kicker?
Cincinnati’s main penalty taker is Luciano Acosta. He has scored five out of his six penalties this season. If Acosta is unavailable, Brandon Vazquez usually will step up to the spot.
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Who takes penalties for LAFC?
Carlos Vela is Los Angeles FC’s first-choice penalty taker. He has taken five of LAFC’s eight penalties this season and has scored three of them.
Who is the first choice penalty taker for St. Louis City SC?
Eduard Löwen is St. Louis City’s number one penalty taker. He has scored all three of his penalty attempts in the 2022/2023 MLS season.
Who takes penalties for New England?
New England Revolution’s first-choice penalty taker is Carles Gil. If Gil does not take the penalty, then expect to see Giacomo Vrioni standing over the spot.
