Arif Kovac and Cameron Dunbar react to winning Golden Boot, Playmaker of the Year titles

What a Decision Day it was for Atlanta United 2!

Outlasting regional rival Orlando City B in a 4-2 thriller to climb into a host seed in their MLS NEXT Pro Cup Playoffs debut was a massive achievement on its own. 

But it was undoubtedly made sweeter as they swept the Golden Boot and Playmaker of the Year honors in the process. 

Notching his 20th goal of the season in the third minute, striker Arif Kovac sealed the deal in his first professional scoring title. 

And playing helper as he's done so many times this season, winger Cameron Dunbar supplied the assist. 

"Really happy for this group of players," ATL UTD 2 coach Jose Silva said. "I love all of them, and what they achieved together in these nine months is incredible. And the way the identity we create as a group can make players the highlight of the league, with Arif winning the Golden Boot and also with Cameron Dunbar being the player with the most assists, so really happy for them.

"And now this doesn't stop here. We go to the playoffs, and they will try to win it all. "

Golden Boot

Kovac, 20, has been pacing the Golden Boot race all season, so it may not exactly have been a surprise when he made it official on Sunday. 

"I'm very proud to win Golden Boot," he said postgame. It's something that I really focused on, and something that I really felt like I could help the team with. I did it, and I'm proud. And now I'm very excited for the playoffs since this is the first time. And I'm super proud of the boys, proud of the group, happy for the coaches, happy for the club because this year has been difficult, and I feel like we deserve it. So super happy.

Kovac has been decorating his resume all season long, earning three Player of the Matchweek honors, including a gaudy Matchweek 11 in which he set a single-game goal contribution record with 5g/1a. He made his pro debut with ATL UTD 2 last season as a free agent academy product. 

Now, capping off a breakout season with hardware, he'll remain a major force to be reckoned with as Atlanta United 2 go for an MLS NEXT Pro Cup run.

Playmaker of the Year

Dunbar ended his regular season with 13 assists, which ties a record set by Marcos Dias last season. 

Going into Sunday's regular-season finale tied at 11 with Columbus Crew 2's ever-dangerous midfielder Kevin Gbamblé, who kept the race interesting until the very end. Dunbar added a second helper to Ignacio Suarez-Couri to leave no doubt he'd be the one to take the second-ever honor for the league's best assist man. 

"Really grateful for all the confidence that the coaching staff has put in me this season," Dunbar said. "My teammates constantly helping me with their movements, with their positioning, and ultimately putting the balls in the back of the net. All I can do is create and give them passes, and then I leave the rest of them to put it away. And they've done fantastic at it all year, so this is as much my award as it is theirs.

"I couldn't do it without them, and to tie the record is obviously great. It's I'm honored and mostly just excited that we qualified for playoffs really, and we can keep going and keep our season going and hopefully end it with some trophies, so you know. Thank you to my teammates. Thank you to my family, my loved ones. Yeah, owe it all to them.

Dunbar, 23, joined ATL UTD 2 ahead of the 2026 season. An LA Galaxy Academy product, Dunbar has made over 20 MLS appearances split between his time with LA and Minnesota United, including a handful of appearances with MNUFC2 in 2023.

Up next

Kovac, Dunbar & Co. finished third in the Eastern Conference and will have the pressure of making a Pick-Your-Opponent selection soon. Stay tuned for more details on how to join in on the fun as they eye-in on their first-ever playoff opponent.