Dénis Bouanga announced as 2023 MLS Golden Boot winner
LAFC forward Dénis Bouanga has officially earned the 2023 MLS Golden Boot presented by Audi. The winger now becomes the first ever Gabonese player to be crowned the Golden Boot winner.
Bouanga scored a league-high 20 goals across the entire season, and the 2023 MLS Golden Bootwasn’t awarded until Decision Day 2023 when Bouanga outscored Giorgos Giakoumakis of Atlanta United (17 goals) and Luciano Acosta of FC Cincinnati (17 goals). DB finished the last three games of the season scoring a total of six goals, even recording a hat trick in the one against Minnesota United FC.
“Audi is proud to support MLS and its journey to showcase the next generation of soccer talent,” said Adam Perez, Brand Partnerships & Experience Senior Specialist at Audi of America. “We’re pleased to congratulate Dénis Bouanga on his Golden Boot win and look forward to our continued commitment to the growth of soccer in the U.S. as well as driving individual progress both on and off the pitch through our ‘Audi Goals Drive Progress’ program.”
For the record, only two other players in the MLS scored multiple hat tricks this 2023 season. The short list only includes Cucho Hernández from the Columbus Crew and Hany Mukhtar from Nashville SC.
In the last five seasons, Bouanga is the third LAFC player to become the MLS Golden Boot winner, following Diego Rossi in 2020 and Carlos Vela in 2019, crediting LAFC as the first team to accomplish the feat with three different players.
Along with Mamadou Diallo of Senegal for the 2000 Tampa Bay Mutiny, Bouanga now becomes the second African player to hold the high honor after winning the 2023 MLS Golden Boot. The last 13 awards since 2011 have included players from 12 different countries.
