At the midway point of the 2016 MLS regular season, Andrea Pirlo is poised to knock Clint Dempsey of his perch of having the best-selling jersey in the league.
The New York City FC midfielder ranks first in overall retail sales of adidas MLS jerseys on MLSstore.com since the start of 2016. Dempsey -- who had the best-selling jersey in each of the last two years -- currently ranks second, and both players were joined in the top 10 by teammates.
MLS leading scorer David Villa of NYCFC ranks third, while Frank Lampard is currently in ninth place. Seattle forward Jordan Morris, the only homegrown player to crack the top 20, ranks fourth. Seattle had the most players in the Top 20, with Brad Evans and Oswaldo Alonso occupying 17th and 18th place, respectively.
The remaining positions in the top 10 are taken up by some familiar faces, nearly all of them Designated Players. The LA Galaxy's Steven Gerrard is fifth, Orlando City midfielder Kaka is sixth, the Montreal Impact's Didier Drogba is seventh, reigning MLS MVP Sebastian Giovinco is eighth, while Sporting Kansas City's Dom Dwyer is 10th.
Seven players who were in the top 20 last year are absent. Of those players who are still in the league, New York Red Bulls forward Bradley Wright-Phillips has recorded the biggest fall so far, having been seventh at season's end in 2015.
The biggest surge in terms of a team came from reigning MLS Cup champions the Portland Timbers. After not having any players in the top 20 last year, there are three that are on the list this time around with Darlington Nagbe, Diego Valeri, and Nat Borchers all present.
Borchers qualifies as the biggest surprise, given the relative anonymity in which defenders toil. He and Evans are the only full-time defenders to make the top 20.
Top 20 most popular MLS player jerseys:
1. Andrea Pirlo, New York City FC
2. Clint Dempsey, Seattle Sounders FC
3. David Villa, New York City FC
4. Jordan Morris, Seattle Sounders FC
5. Steven Gerrard, LA Galaxy
6. Kaka, Orlando City SC
7. Didier Drogba, Montreal Impact
8. Sebastian Giovinco, Toronto FC
9. Frank Lampard, New York City FC
10. Dom Dwyer, Sporting Kansas City
11. Darlington Nagbe, Portland Timbers
12. Diego Valeri, Portland Timbers
13. Giovani Dos Santos, LA Galaxy
14. Robbie Keane, LA Galaxy
15. Graham Zusi, Sporting Kansas City
16. Nat Borchers, Portland Timbers
17. Brad Evans, Seattle Sounders FC
18. Osvaldo Alonso, Seattle Sounders FC
19. Brek Shea, Orlando City SC
20. Kei Kamara, New England Revolution