# MLS Defender of the Year Award

The Major League Soccer Defender of the Year Award is an annual award handed out to the top defender in Major League Soccer annually since the league's inception in 1996. The award is decided based on votes from MLS players, MLS coaches and executives and media members.
John Doyle won the inaugural award with the San Jose Clash for the 1996 MLS season.

## Winners

| Season | Winner | Team | Finalists |
| 1996 | John Doyle | San Jose Clash | |
| 1997 | Eddie Pope | D.C. United | |
| 1998 | Luboš Kubík | Chicago Fire | |
| 1999 | Robin Fraser | Los Angeles Galaxy | |
| 2000 | Peter Vermes | Kansas City Wizards | |
| 2001 | Jeff Agoos | San Jose Earthquakes | |
| 2002 | Carlos Bocanegra | Chicago Fire | |
| 2003 | Carlos Bocanegra (2) | Chicago Fire | |
| 2004 | Robin Fraser (2) | Columbus Crew | Jimmy Conrad Eddie Pope |
| 2005 | Jimmy Conrad | Kansas City Wizards | Danny Califf Tyrone Marshall |
| 2006 | Bobby Boswell | D.C. United | Jimmy Conrad Jose Burciaga |
| 2007 | Michael Parkhurst | New England Revolution | |
| 2008 | Chad Marshall | Columbus Crew | Jimmy Conrad Bakary Soumare |
| 2009 | Chad Marshall (2) | Columbus Crew | |
| 2010 | Jámison Olave | Real Salt Lake | Omar Gonzalez Nat Borchers |
| 2011 | Omar Gonzalez | Los Angeles Galaxy | Jámison Olave Nat Borchers Carlos Valdés |
| 2012 | Matt Besler | Sporting Kansas City | Víctor Bernárdez Aurélien Collin Jay DeMerit |
| 2013 | José Gonçalves | New England Revolution | Matt Besler Omar Gonzalez Jámison Olave |
| 2014 | Chad Marshall (3) | Seattle Sounders FC | Bobby Boswell Omar Gonzalez Michael Parkhurst |
| 2015 | Laurent Ciman | Montreal Impact | Kendall Waston Matt Hedges Matt Miazga |
| 2016 | Matt Hedges | FC Dallas | Jelle Van Damme Axel Sjöberg Walker Zimmerman Steve Birnbaum |
| 2017 | Ike Opara | Sporting Kansas City | Justin Morrow Kendall Waston Leandro González Pírez Matt Besler |
| 2018 | Aaron Long | New York Red Bulls | Chad Marshall Michael Parkhurst Leandro González Pírez Kemar Lawrence |
| 2019 | Ike Opara (2) | Minnesota United FC | Walker Zimmerman Miles Robinson Maxime Chanot Eddie Segura Aaron Long |
| 2020 | Walker Zimmerman | Nashville SC | Mark McKenzie Jonathan Mensah Anton Tinnerholm Chris Mavinga Richie Laryea |
| 2021 | Walker Zimmerman (2) | Nashville SC | Yeimar Gómez Andrade Miles Robinson Andreu Fontàs DeJuan Jones |
| 2022 | Jakob Glesnes | Philadelphia Union | Kai Wagner Alexander Callens |
| 2023 | Matt Miazga | FC Cincinnati | Tim Parker Yeimar Gómez Andrade |
| 2024 | Steven Moreira | Columbus Crew | Jordi Alba Jackson Ragen |

## Wins by club

| Club | Wins |
| Columbus Crew | 4 |
| Kansas City Wizards/Sporting KC | 4 |
| Chicago Fire | 3 |
| D.C. United | 2 |
| LA Galaxy | 2 |
| Nashville SC | 2 |
| New England Revolution | 2 |
| San Jose Clash/Earthquakes | 2 |
| FC Cincinnati | 1 |
| FC Dallas | 1 |
| Minnesota United FC | 1 |
| Montréal Impact/CF Montréal | 1 |
| New York Red Bulls | 1 |
| Philadelphia Union | 1 |
| Real Salt Lake | 1 |
| Seattle Sounders FC | 1 |
| FC Cincinnati | 1 |

## Wins by nationality

| Nationality | Wins |
| United States | 24 |
| Belgium | 1 |
| Cape Verde | 1 |
| Colombia | 1 |
| Czech Republic | 1 |
| Norway | 1 |
| Portugal | 1 |