Average Height and Weight of MLS Soccer Players (2023)

I’ve been a collegiate sports performance coach for 20 years. Over my career, I always felt it was extremely effective to show guys the heights and weights of players at their position in the pros.

It helped give many players the extra motivation needed to gain weight when they were able to compare themselves to guys at the next level.

So, these are essentially the same numbers I would share with players I’m now sharing with you. I took the active 30-man rosters for the 2023 Major League Soccer season, over 700 players total and then broke them down by position.

For this guide, I took an average of the heights and weights of each position group across the league.

In addition, just for fun, I listed the tallest, shortest, heaviest and lightest players as well regardless of position. Go ahead and impress someone today with your newfound random soccer knowledge.

Average Height of an MLS Player by Position

The average height of a major league soccer player is 70.98 inches (just under 5’11”), with the tallest position being Goalkeeper at 74.56 (over 6’2 1/2″).

Average Major League Soccer Player Height
Position	Height (inches)	*Height (ft/inches)**
Overall	70.98	5’11”
Goalkeeper	74.56	6’2 1/2″
Forward	70.63	5’10 3/4″
Midfielder	69.23	5’9 1/4″
Defender	71.85	5’11 3/4″

*Rounded to the nearest quarter-inch.

Average Weight of an MLS Player by Position

The average weight of a major league soccer player is 166.01 pounds.

Average Major League Soccer Player Weight
Position	Weight (pounds)
Overall	166.01
Goalkeeper	186.2
Forward	164.41
Midfielder	157.02
Defender	169.71

Who Are The Tallest Players in Major League Soccer?

There are 8 players listed at 6’6″ or taller – half goalkeepers and half defenders.

Tallest Players in the MLS
Player	Height	Position	Team
Matthew Nocita	6’8″	Defender	New York Red Bulls
Hunter Sulte	6’7″	Goalkeeper	Portland Timbers
Ben Lundt	6’6″	Goalkeeper	St Louis City SC
Javier Otero	6’6″	Goalkeeper	Orlando City
Benjamin Martino	6’6″	Goalkeeper	Nashville SC
Jackson Ragen	6’6″	Defender	Seattle Sounders FC
Aime Mabika	6’6″	Defender	Inter Miami CF
Jack Elliott	6’6″	Defender	Philadelphia Union

Who are the Shortest Players in Major League Soccer?

There are 9 players 5’4″ or shorter, the majority of them are midfielders.

Shortest Players in the MLS
Player	Height	Position	Team
Daniel Rios	5’1″	Midfielder	Houston Dynamo
Luciano Acosta	5’3″	Midfielder	FC Cincinnati
Michael Barrios	5’4″	Forward	Colorado Rapids
Cameron Dunbar	5’4″	Forward	Minnesota United
Javier Casas	5’4″	Midfielder	Chicago Fire
Erik Duenas	5’4″	Midfielder	Los Angeles Football Club
Frankie Amaya	5’4″	Midfielder	New York Red Bulls
Lorenzo Insigne	5’4″	Midfielder	Toronto FC
Andres Cubas	5’4″	Midfielder	Vancouver Whitecaps

Who are the Heaviest Players in the MLS?

Here are the eight heaviest guys in the league, all 209 pounds or more.

Heaviest Players in the MLS
Player	Weight	Position	Team
Evan Louro	225	Goalkeeper	FC Cincinnati
Ben Lundt	220	Goalkeeper	St Louis City SC
Aime Mabika	214	Defender	Inter Miami CF
Fred Emmings	209	Goalkeeper	Minnesota United
John Pulskamp	209	Goalkeeper	Sporting Kansas City
Alex Bono	209	Goalkeeper	DC United
Preston Judd	209	Forward	LA Galaxy
Tim Melia	209	Goalkeeper	Sporting Kansas City

Who are the Lightest Players in the MLS?

Here are the ten lightest guys in Major League Soccer, all weighing 130 pounds or less.

Lightest Players in the MLS
Player	Weight	Position	Team
Riqui Puig	123	Midfielder	LA Galaxy
Nuno Santos	126	Midfielder	Charlotte FC
Anthony Sorenson	126	Defender	Philadelphia Union
Edwin Mosquera	128	Forward	Atlanta United
Erik Duenas	130	Midfielder	Los Angeles Football Club
Lorenzo Insigne	130	Midfielder	Toronto FC
Ozzie Cisneros	130	Midfielder	Sporting Kansas City
Edison Azcona	130	Forward	Inter Miami CF
Jojea Kwizera	130	Forward	CF Montreal
Martin Ojeda	130	Midfielder	Orlando City

Final Thoughts

So, what did I learn?

I always tell people it’s hard to wrap your head around how big the NBA Guards are.

This is because the only context most people have is seeing them on the court next to guys that are 7 feet tall. This makes them look small even though most guards are around 6’4″ and would easily be one of the biggest people in almost any other social situation.

Soccer players are somewhat the opposite. The average player is only around 5’11”, at least a few inches shorter than players of other major sports.

On top of that, there are only 30 players out of 735 that weigh 200 pounds. Crazy considering 200 pounds (or more) is the average size of many professional athletes.

This all makes sense though. It’s a sport where speed, skill and a tremendous amount of conditioning are critical for success.

Height can be helpful for goalkeepers for obvious reasons and it can also be beneficial for players to play corners and crosses in the air. Being heavy though is more of a disadvantage than an advantage like it is in other sports.

References

MLSsoccer.com