Expansion side Charlotte drew a single-game attendance record of 74,479 fans, eclipsing the 73,019 mark set by Atlanta United in the 2018 MLS Cup.
Galaxy had the better of the chances with Victor Vazquez hitting the woodwork in the 18th minute, while Javier Hernandez forced a good save from Charlotte goalkeeper Kristijan Kahlina.
Alvarez made the decisive breakthrough with a spectacular left-foot shot from outside the box which nestled into the top corner to spoil the Charlotte party.
Scottish forward Lewis Morgan netted a first-half hat-trick as New York Red Bulls won 4-1 away to Toronto.
Morgan's finishes for his opening two goals were similar, set up by Patryk Klimala with curling right-foot shots in the 17th and 24th minutes.
Jesus Jimenez pulled one back for Toronto, before Klimala released Morgan on halfway and the Scot raced forward to slot home for his treble.
Carles Gil's penalty on the stroke of half-time earned 2021 Supporters' Shield winners New England Revolution a 1-0 home win over Dallas. The victory meant Revs head coach Bruce Arena became the all-time leader among MLS coaches for regular-season wins.
Francisco Calvo scored twice in the final 10 minutes as 10-man San Jose Earthquakes salvaged a 3-3 draw with Columbus Crew.
Ola Kamara netted a stoppage-time winner for DC United as they beat Cincinnati 1-0, while Chicago Fire and Orlando City drew 0-0 and Real Salt Lake won 1-0 over Seattle Sounders.
Colorado Rapids won 3-0 over Atlanta United at home and Vancouver Whitecaps held on for a goalless draw with reigning MLS Cup champions New York City.
Sporting KC got past Houston Dynamo 1-0 while 10-man Philadelphia Union edged Montreal 2-1 and Minnesota United drew 1-1 with Nashville.
Former Manchester United and Real Madrid striker Chicharito endured a difficult and injury-plagued 2020 season, Mexico's all-time leading goalscorer netting just twice after joining the Galaxy.
But Chicharito kicked off his redemption season in style – his two-goal second half sinking David Beckham's Inter Miami in Sunday's season opener.
"I'm holding [back] my tears. I suffered the loss of my grandfather, I would love him to keep watching [me] scoring goals," Chicharito said. "I'm very touched because, like I told you, last year was very difficult.
"I miss him so much and these goals are for him, my kids, my whole family, my friends, everyone. I maintain patience, I keep grinding and thankfully things are coming around and hopefully, like I say, I just want to be a part of an unbelievable season and lift the trophy."
Trailing to Robbie Robinson's opening goal in first-half stoppage time, Chicharito equalised just past the hour mark in front of a sell-out crowd in Miami.
Former Juventus and Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Higuain restored Inter Miami's lead in the 68th minute – just his second goal for the club since arriving in the United States.
It had ex-United utility and former England women's boss Neville dreaming of a dream start in Miami, where he replaced Diego Alonso as head coach ahead of the 2021 season.
But Chicharito levelled proceedings again with a trademark header 17 minutes from the end before Sacha Kljestan put the Galaxy in front in the 81st minute.
Elsewhere, reigning champions Columbus Crew drew 0-0 against Supporters' Shield holders Philadelphia Union, while Vancouver Whitecaps edged Portland Timbers 1-0.
In the first Los Angeles derby fixture of the MLS season, former Manchester United and Real Madrid star Chicharito guided the Galaxy to a 2-1 victory on Saturday.
Chicharito, who attempted just one shot in the loss to Seattle Sounders last time out, the sixth time in 10 MLS starts he has taken fewer than two shots (60 per cent) – he attempted fewer than two shots in just 36.7 per cent of his starts in the five major European leagues – improved his league-best tally to six goals with the 11th-minute opener at Dignity Health Sports Park, where he tucked the ball past Pablo Sisniega.
LAFC restored parity 28 minutes from the end when Diego Rossi equalised following some combination play between team-mates Latif Blessing and Corey Baird.
But the Galaxy walked away with maximum points after Chicharito teed up Jonathan dos Santos for the 79th-minute winner.
The Galaxy are second in the Western Conference, level on points with leaders San Jose Earthquakes, while LAFC are four points off the pace in eighth position.
Orlando City captain Nani stayed hot with another goal in the club's 1-1 draw against New York City.
Ex-United winger and Premier League champion Nani scored another memorable goal seven minutes into the second half, finding the back of the net with a stunning effort from the edge of the penalty area.
Nani's third goal in three games had Orlando on track for maximum points until a 77th-minute penalty via Valentin Castellanos salvaged a draw for the visitors.
"I've been working so hard and been focused on my games," Nani said post-match. "I think this is a reward [for] what you do during the week, the preparation into the games."
New York top the Eastern Conference on seven points, level with New England Revolution but a point clear of Orlando, New York Red Bulls and Nashville.
The Revolution lost 2-0 against Nashville, while the Red Bulls ran out 2-0 winners over Toronto.
Elsewhere, defending champions Columbus Crew defeated DC United 3-1, last season's Supporters' Shield winners Philadelphia Union topped Chicago Fire 2-0, Vancouver Whitecaps beat Montreal Impact by the same scoreline, Dallas and Houston Dynamo drew 1-1, while Colorado Rapids edged Minnesota United 3-2.
The defeat means the Galaxy are winless in their past eight matches and while they dropped down to sixth in the Western Conference, their form means they could find themselves only a point ahead of the post-season chasing pack.
Former Manchester United forward Javier 'Chicharito' Hernandez stung RSL goalkeeper David Ochoa's palms early, before Damir Kreilach scored his 11th goal of the season to put the hosts 1-0 on the stroke of half-time.
Ochoa denied Chicharito again in a 57th-minute fast break, before the latter equalised with 14 minutes remaining midweek.
But in the fifth of six stoppage-time minutes, Anderson Julio lashed in a wonderful volley from outside the box to claim the win for fifth-placed RSL and boost their play-off chances.
United States teenager Ricardo Pepi netted his 12th goal of the campaign as 10-man Dallas went down 3-1 to Western Conference contenders and second-placed Sporting Kansas City.
Daniel Salloi scored a double for Sporting KC, taking his season tally to 14, while Dallas had Bryan Acosta sent off.
Seattle Sounders stayed top of the Western Conference, ahead of Sporting KC, as Raul Ruidiaz scored a brace in a 3-1 win away to San Jose Earthquakes.
Ruidiaz opened the scoring in the 25th minute, before firing home from the spot three minutes prior to the break. The Peruvian has 16 MLS goals this season, behind only DC United's Ola Kamara with 17.
Dairon Asprilla scored the winner as Portland Timbers claimed a 2-1 victory at Los Angeles FC to remain fourth in the west.
Supporters' Shield leaders New England Revolution maintained their 14-point advantage atop the Eastern Conference with a 4-1 triumph away to Montreal, extending their unbeaten run to six games.
Nashville, second in the east, blew a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 with Orlando City, while DC United got past Minnesota United 3-1.
Atlanta United boosted their play-offs hopes with a 1-0 win over Inter Miami, who have lost three in a row, while Toronto beat FC Cincinnati 3-2.
New York City suffered a second straight loss, going down 2-0 to Chicago Fire, and Philadelphia Union could only manage a 1-1 draw at New York Red Bulls.
Colorado Rapids eased past Austin 3-0 and Houston Dynamo played out a goalless draw with Vancouver Whitecaps.
First-half goals from Tajon Buchanan, Emmanuel Boateng and Adam Buksa helped New England open up a 3-0 half-time lead and they never looked back.
Canada international Buchanan was critical, pouncing on a rebound to fire home the opener from close range, before dribbling in the box and providing the pass for Boateng's first-time effort.
Cincinnati pulled a goal back from record signing Brenner's 54th-minute strike but Buksa added a second on the hour, from Gustavo Bou's assist, to seal a comfortable win.
Revolution have now won four straight matches and are unbeaten in eight games. New England have scored a league-leading 44 goals this year and turned it on without injured star midfielder Carles Gil.
Benji Michel scored a 51st-minute winner as Orlando City snapped their three-game winless run with a 1-0 win over Chicago Fire to move up to second in the east.
Orlando were not helped when Nani was substituted on the half hour, but found a winner when Michel drove home after Tesho Akindele's steal.
Quinn Sullivan netted an 87th-minute equalizer to keep Philadelphia Union in touch with Orlando after a 1-1 home draw with Montreal.
Djordje Mihailovic had put Montreal ahead on the stroke of half-time before Sullivan's leveler which leaves Union two points behind Orlando.
Inter Miami continued their form resurgence with a 3-1 victory over Toronto, moving them up to 11th in the east and leaving the Canadians in last.
Mexican midfielder Rodolfo Pizarro netted a double while Robbie Robinson also scored as Inter claimed their third win in four games.
Damian Moreno scored a late winner as Atlanta United claimed their fourth consecutive win, edging DC United 2-1.
Houston Dynamo snapped their four-game losing run with 2-2 draw with Dallas in their Texan showdown, while Austin climbed off the foot of the Western Conference with a 3-1 home win over Portland Timbers.
Colorado Rapids claimed a third straight win, getting past Real Salt Lake 2-1 in the Rocky Mountain Cup while Vancouver came from behind to win 2-1 over LAFC.
After numerous delays, New York Red Bulls' derby with New York City was postponed with the pitch deemed unplayable after inclement weather as Hurricane Henri approached.
Darwin Quintero's second-half brace inspired Houston in Kansas City, where nearly 2,300 fans were allowed to attend for the first home match in nearly six months at Children's Mercy Park amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The Dynamo broke the deadlock via Alberth Elis in the 17th minute before Sporting KC's Johnny Russell equalised nine minutes later.
Houston, though, went into the interval leading 2-1 courtesy of Christian Ramirez's strike on the stroke of half-time.
Niko Hansen doubled the lead within three minutes of the restart, while Gabi Kinda reduced the deficit for Sporting KC moments later.
But Quintero's two goals in the space of four minutes just past the hour mark put the game beyond doubt.
After two defeats and four draws, Houston are ninth in the Western Conference, while Sporting KC remain four points clear atop the standings.
Elsewhere, Philadelphia Union edged New York Red Bulls 1-0 thanks to Kacper Przybylko's first-half goal.
With the win, the third-placed Union moved within four points of Eastern Conference pacesetters Columbus Crew.
Thierry Henry's Montreal Impact defeated Canadian rivals Vancouver Whitecaps 2-0, Chicago Fire accounted for FC Cincinnati 3-0, while New England Revolution prevailed 2-1 against DC United.
Eastern Conference leaders Columbus produced a late comeback to draw with Chicago Fire, but their lead is now just three points after Philadelphia enjoyed a win.
Philadelphia left it late to overcome New England Revolution 2-1 at Subaru Park.
With the game locked at 0-0, New England were reduced to 10 men when Matt Polster was shown a second yellow card in the 56th minute.
Just 17 minutes later and Philadelphia took the lead, Anthony Fontana chipping in from close range.
But a fine equaliser from Tajon Buchanan appeared to have New England set to earn a point.
However, there was late drama as Fontana drilled in a wonderful goal from 25 yards in the 95th minute.
Columbus appeared set for their second defeat of the MLS season when they fell 2-0 behind in Chicago.
But Fatai Alashe pulled a goal back for the Crew before Gyasi Zardes' 88th-minute equaliser.
At the bottom of the conference, Inter Miami slumped to a 2-1 loss to Orlando City.
Coming off a win over Atlanta United, Inter suffered their seventh loss in 11 games this season.
Elsewhere, the New York Red Bulls recorded a 2-0 win over DC United and New York City edged Cincinnati 2-1.
Nashville enjoyed a 4-2 win over Atlanta United, Dallas beat Houston Dynamo 2-1 and the Colorado Rapids thrashed Real Salt Lake 5-0.
Galaxy, who had endured a nine-game winless skid, had beaten Portland Timbers 2-1 on the weekend before backing that up in Houston to reinforce their grip on sixth spot in the Western Conference midweek.
Greg Vanney's Galaxy went ahead in the 39th minute from veteran Sacha Kljestan's penalty, after Maynor Figueroa brought down Kevin Cabral inside the box.
Zarek Valentin's own goal on the stroke of half-time from Efrain Alvarez's cutback doubled Galaxy's advantage.
Two minutes into the second half, Javier 'Chicharito' Hernandez provided a well-weighted pass for Kevin Cabral to add a third, moving Galaxy up to 45 points and above Real Salt Lake into fifth in the west.
New England Revolution moved another step closer to clinching the Supporters' Shield with a come-from-behind 3-2 win at DC United.
Adam Buksa, Carles Gil and Gustavo Bou all scored within 18 minutes as the Revolution responded to Nigel Robertha's 51st-minute opener for DC United.
The result moved Eastern Conference pacesetters New England to 69 points from 31 games, with Western Conference leaders Seattle Sounders closest behind them on 58 points after 30 games after they lost ground following a 1-1 draw with third-placed Colorado Rapids.
Elsewhere, Nashville – second behind New England in the east – drew for the fifth straight game in a 1-1 stalemate against defending MLS champions Columbus Crew and Cristian Arango's hat-trick guided Los Angeles FC past Dallas 3-2.
Inter Miami snapped their six-game losing skid and kept alive their faint play-off aspirations with a 3-0 home victory over Toronto.
Gudmundur Thorarinsson equalised late for New York City but their winless run extended to six games after a 1-1 draw at Atlanta United, Minnesota United were 3-2 winners against Philadelphia Union, Orlando City and Montreal played out a 1-1 draw.
Chicago Fire prevailed 4-3 over struggling FC Cincinnati, Vancouver Whitecaps came from two goals down to win 3-2 away to Portland Timbers, while San Jose Earthquakes eased past lowly Austin 4-0.
Hernandez had won a 26th minute penalty but spurned the early chance, with Austin goalkeeper Brad Stuver saving to his left.
Galaxy midfielder Sebastian Lletget got in behind the Austin defence and calmly put them ahead 10 minutes later.
Former Manchester United man Hernandez earned redemption for his missed penalty when he scored the Galaxy's second goal in the 77th minute to seal the points.
The Galaxy have four wins from five games and move into second spot in the Western Conference, while it is back-to-back losses for Austin.
Eastern Conference leaders New York City stumbled to a second consecutive draw with Toronto's Jacob Shaffelburg equalizing with a quarter of an hour to go to finish 1-1.
City, who drew at Orlando City last weekend, had gone ahead through Jess Medina in the 54th minute but could not claim the three points.
Last season's Supporters' Shield winners Philadelphia Union maintained their uplift in form with a 1-0 home victory over the New York Red Bulls.
Philadelphia have now gone three games unbeaten, with Jamaican striker Cory Burke netting a ninth minute winner.
The Red Bulls suffer their third loss of the campaign and had substitute Dru Yearwood given his marching orders late on to rub salt into their wounds.
Logan Ketterer made a penalty save as the Portland Timbers recorded a 2-0 away win over the San Jose Earthquakes.
Ketterer dived low to his left to deny veteran Chris Wondolowski from the spot in the 62nd minute with Portland up 1-0 at the time.
Yimmi Chara had earlier chipped in the opener in the fifth minute, with Marvin Loria heading home his first goal of the season in the 74th minute, condemning San Jose to a second straight home defeat.
Colorado Rapids climbed up to third in the West with a 3-1 home win over Houston Dynamo after a thrilling four-goal first-half.
Michael Barrios provided two assists while Cole Barrett scored on the stroke of half-time after an explicable error from Houston keeper Marko Maric.
Marcelino Moreno scored a 94th minute header to help Atlanta United leapfrog Montreal into second in the Eastern Conference with a 1-0 win.
Finnish midfielder Robin Lod scored a last-gasp winner, forcing the ball home from close range from a corner, as last season's MLS Cup semi-finalists Minnesota United edged Dallas 1-0.
Nashville SC remain unbeaten after their fourth draw of the campaign, holding Real Salt Lake 0-0.
The Revolution raced to a three-goal lead but were forced to hold on in the final quarter of an hour after strikes from Patryk Klimala and Andres Reyes midweek.
Carles Gil provided the assist for all three Revolution goals, taking his season tally to an MLS-high 10, stabbing through to Canadian forward Tajon Buchanan for the 26th-minute opener.
Spanish midfielder Gil laid off for DeJuan Jones' 32nd-minute strike, before pumping the ball forward for Gustavo Bou to make it 3-0 six minutes into the second half before the Red Bulls rallied.
The win moved New England five points clear in the Eastern Conference, sitting ahead of Orlando City – who have a game in hand – and Philadelphia Union who are both on 18 points.
Jamiro Monteiro scored the only goal of the game as Philadelphia kept up their good form with a 1-0 victory over Columbus Crew.
Seattle Sounders remain unbeaten after Raul Ruidiaz's 88th-minute penalty clinched a 2-1 win against Real Salt Lake, extending their club-record unbeaten start to 10 matches.
Cristian Roldan had put Seattle ahead five minutes into the second half, reacting fastest to score from a rebound inside the box.
RSL levelled with 12 minutes to go, when they won a penalty which was converted by Slovakian Albert Rusnak.
Ruidiaz had the final say netting his eighth goal of the season with a cool Panenka finish from the spot for the Western Conference-leading Sounders.
New York City continued their rollercoaster run with a 1-0 triumph over Atlanta United via Ismael Tajouri's 69th-minute winner.
Javier 'Chicharito' Hernandez got on the scoresheet before late drama as LA Galaxy won 2-1 at Vancouver Whitecaps.
Former Manchester United and Real Madrid forward Chicharito opened the scoring, sliding home in the 47th minute with Galaxy appearing destined to claim all three points before a 90th-minute equaliser from Janio Bikel.
There would be another late twist, when the Galaxy's Efrain Alvarez scored in the third minute of stoppage – his stunning strike finding the back of the net after hopeful ball into the box.
Mexico international Carlos Vela also netted along with providing an assist as Los Angeles FC won 2-0 over Dallas.
Elsewhere, Sporting Kansas City defeated Colorado Rapids 3-1, Portland Timbers and Houston Dynamo drew 2-2, Nashville outlasted Toronto 3-2 courtesy of a 92nd-minute winner, Cincinnati edged Chicago Fire 1-0, Minnesota United beat Austin 2-0, while 10-man Montreal and DC United played out a goalless stalemate.
At the helm of Montreal, Henry's Impact came from behind to beat the New England Revolution 2-1 on the opening day of the MLS season.
The Arsenal great's side had fallen behind after just 13 minutes at Stade Olympique, where Teal Bunbury volleyed in a Cristian Penilla cross.
However, Romell Quioto headed in from close range to bring Montreal level just eight minutes before half-time.
And the hosts found an 80th-minute winner as Maximiliano Urruti spectacularly lobbed stranded New England goalkeeper Matt Turner.
Hernandez made his LA Galaxy debut in a 1-1 draw away to the Houston Dynamo.
The former Manchester United and Real Madrid forward played 90 minutes as Houston came from behind, Mauro Manotas cancelling out Cristian Pavon's opener.
Atlanta United spoiled Nashville SC's first MLS game with a 2-1 victory at Nissan Stadium.
Walker Zimmerman scored Nashville's first goal to cancel out Ezequiel Barco's opener, but Emerson Hyndman's 37th-minute strike proved to be the winner in front of a crowd of 59,069.
Elsewhere, Oswaldo Alanis' brilliant 95th-minute free-kick helped the San Jose Earthquakes hold Toronto to a 2-2 draw.
The Colorado Rapids recorded a 2-1 win over DC United, Dallas beat Philadelphia Union 2-0, Orlando City and Real Salt Lake played out a 0-0 draw and Sporting Kansas City overcame the Vancouver Whitecaps 3-1.
Phil Neville's Inter have now claimed eight points from their past four games, having been rooted to the bottom of the Eastern Conference after six defeats in a row.
Nashville had taken the lead early in the second half from Charles Sapong but Miami responded on the hour mark.
Ex-France international Blaise Matuidi played in former Real Madrid forward Higuain who calmly collected the ball and slotted home for 1-1.
Inter dramatically claimed all three points in the 95th minute when Gonzalo's brother Federico Higuain whipped in a well-weighted cross for Indiana Vassilev to head home.
The win moves Miami out of last spot in the east and up to 12th.
At the other end of the conference table, New England Revolution moved 10 points clear with a 2-1 home win over Philadelphia Union.
Matthew Polster and Gustavo Bou netted first-half goals, sandwiching Paxten Aaronson's strike to extend New England's unbeaten run to six games.
Bou's goal came after his 39th-minute penalty was saved by Union goalkeeper Andre Blake, only for the Argentine to convert the rebound.
New York Red Bulls are winless in six after going down 2-1 to lowly Chicago Fire following Serbian midfielder Luka Stojanovic's early double strike.
DC United came from behind to win 2-1 over Montreal, while San Jose Earthquakes beat LAFC 2-1 in the Western Conference.
LA Galaxy were held to a 1-1 home draw by Vancouver Whitecaps with Kevin Cabral's 32nd-minute goal cancelled out by Ranko Veselinovic's 50th-minute reply.
Higuain converted an 81st-minute free-kick and it proved to be the winner as Inter Miami defeated New York Red Bulls 2-1 on Wednesday.
The former Argentina international, who joined David Beckham's Inter Miami from Serie A champions Juventus, missed a penalty on debut last month.
In his third appearance for Inter Miami, Higuain earned a free-kick with nine minutes remaining and stepped up to beat Red Bulls goalkeeper David Jensen with a powerful shot into the top corner.
Higuain's first MLS goal came via a direct free-kick after not scoring a set-piece in 428 matches during his time in the top five European leagues, per Opta.
"That's my role," Higuain said in a post-match news conference. "I've been playing in the best leagues in the world and that's my main function, to score."
The Red Bulls had led through Omir Fernandez's 53rd-minute opener, before Matias Pellegrini equalised two minutes later in New Jersey.
Inter Miami are 12th in the 14-team Eastern Conference with 14 points from 16 games, while the Red Bulls are six points better off in seventh.
The visiting Timbers defeated the struggling Galaxy in a wild nine-goal showdown in Carson, California.
Portland led 2-1 at half-time before scoring another four goals in a thrilling encounter at Dignity Health Sports Park.
Felipe Mora and Jeremy Ebobisse each finished with braces as the Timbers scored a joint-club record six goals for the second time in four matches, having not scored more than five times in any of their first 337 MLS matches, via Opta.
The Galaxy have lost five matches in a row to sit bottom of the Western Conference, while the Timbers are second and three points adrift of leaders Seattle Sounders – who edged Real Salt Lake 2-1.
Elsewhere, New York City eased past DC United 4-1, Eastern Conference leaders Toronto downed New England Revolution 1-0 and Philadelphia Union were too good for FC Cincinnati 3-0.
Dallas lost 2-0 to Houston Dynamo, Sporting Kansas City were 1-0 winners over Chicago Fire, San Jose Earthquakes beat nine-man Vancouver Whitecaps 3-0, Montreal Impact topped Columbus Crew 2-1, while Atlanta United and Orlando City played out a goalless draw.
The Colorado Rapids-Los Angeles FC clash was postponed after one new confirmed case of coronavirus among the Rapids staff.
Galaxy stretched their winning streak to four games with a 3-0 victory in the derby clash at Dignity Health Sports Park on Sunday.
Cristian Pavon opened the scoring in the 51st minute, lobbing Pablo Sisniega after the LAFC goalkeeper was left stranded having come to attempt to collect an Emiliano Insua pass.
Just two minutes later and LAFC were dealt another blow, Mark-Anthony Kaye sent off for a rash challenge on Julian Araujo.
Galaxy capitalised on their numerical advantage as Sebastian Lletget tucked away a smart Pavon set-piece in the 73rd minute.
And 10 minutes later Lletget sealed the win, his overhead kick from Rolf Feltscher's cross finding the corner.
Galaxy jumped into fourth in the Western Conference after a second straight El Trafico win.
Columbus are five points clear atop the Eastern Conference after a 3-0 win over FC Cincinnati.
The Crew needed until the second half to break the game open at MAPFRE Stadium in Ohio.
Pedro Santos opened the scoring in the 52nd minute before Gyasi Zardes' brace.
Zardes got on the end of a Santos cross before later scrambling in to see Columbus to a seventh win in 10 MLS games this season.
Philadelphia Union are second to Columbus and recorded a 3-0 win over New York Red Bulls.
Minnesota United scored four second-half goals in a 4-0 win over Real Salt Lake, New England Revolution edged Chicago Fire 2-1 and Portland Timbers recorded a 2-1 victory against Seattle Sounders.
Inter Miami's struggles continued with a 0-0 draw against Nashville as former Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Blaise Matuidi made his debut, while DC United and New York City also drew 0-0.
In their first season in MLS, Inter Miami reached the play-offs after a 2-1 win over FC Cincinnati on Decision Day.
Mikey Ambrose's 25-yard strike in the 19th minute gave Diego Alonso's side the lead before Leandro Gonzalez Pirez doubled the advantage with a header.
Joe Gyau's brilliant goal halved the deficit for Cincinnati in the 66th minute, but Inter Miami held on despite Andres Reyes' red card.
Philadelphia won the first trophy in their history, securing the Supporters' Shield thanks to a 2-0 win over New England Revolution.
Sergio Santos and Cory Burke scored either side of half-time for the Union, who finished three points clear of Toronto atop the Eastern Conference.
Philadelphia won all nine of their home matches during the 2020 MLS season, tied for the second-longest single-season home winning streak in league history.
Toronto were chasing Philadelphia but fell to a 2-1 loss to New York Red Bulls.
Montreal Impact also secured a play-off place thanks to a come-from-behind 3-2 win over DC United.
DC led twice as Donovan Pines and Ola Kamara had goals cancelled out by Bojan Krkic and Victor Wanyama respectively.
But Romell Quioto tapped in an 88th-minute winner for the Impact, who had Samuel Piette sent off in additional time.
New York City edged Chicago Fire 4-3 in a thriller, Columbus Crew overcame Atlanta United 2-1 and Nashville beat Orlando City 3-2.
Sporting Kansas City wrapped up the top seed in the Western Conference after a 2-0 win over Real Salt Lake.
It meant the Seattle Sounders' 4-1 victory against San Jose Earthquakes mattered little as they finished second.
Carlos Vela scored in Los Angeles FC's 1-1 draw with Portland Timbers, Minnesota United cruised past Dallas 3-0, Colorado Rapids beat Houston Dynamo 2-1 and Vancouver Whitecaps handed a 10-man LA Galaxy a 3-0 loss.
City defender Alexander Callens netted the game's only goal in the 29th minute, while goalkeeper Sean Johnson was outstanding for the visitors.
Callens powered in the winner with a bouncing header from Santiago Rodriguez's corner.
Minnesota almost equalised in the 90th minute but were thwarted by a spectacular double save by Johnson from Emanuel Reynoso and Robin Lod efforts.
City moved ahead of Philadelphia Union in the east, after they could only manage a 1-1 draw away to under-achieving New England Revolution.
The Revs, who won last season's Supporters' Shield, have rallied after a poor start to their campaign, going unbeaten in their past five, but have only collected 16 points from 13 games.
Gustavo Bou had put New England ahead from the penalty spot in the 75th minute, but Union levelled two minutes later after Omar Gonzalez's inexplicable error allowed Mikael Uhre to score.
Montreal, who are third in the east, got back on the winners' list with a hard-fought 4-3 victory over Cincinnati with a double from Rommel Quioto.
Luquinhas netted a brace as New York Red Bulls stayed in touch with the Eastern Conference's top three with a 4-1 home victory over struggling DC United.
In the Western Conference, LAFC remains four points clear at the top after Brian Rodriguez's 47th-minute winner clinched a 3-2 triumph over San Jose Earthquakes.
LAFC had raced to a 2-0 lead inside 13 minutes but San Jose equalised after two goals from in-form Jeremy Ebobisse, who has scored an equal-league high nine times this term.
Rodriguez, who got the assist for Ryan Hollingshead's 13th minute goal, scored when a loose ball arrived at his feet unmarked at the back post, firing past Earthquakes goalkeeper JT Marcinkowski.
Nashville ended the Colorado Rapids' remarkable 23-game unbeaten run at home with a 3-1 victory.
Charles Sapong netted in the eighth minute, before Hany Mukhtar's quickfire double had Nashville 3-0 up inside 18 minutes. The win moves Nashville up to fifth in the west.
Dallas came from behind to win 3-1 at Orlando City, Real Salt Lake won their third straight with a 3-0 victory over Houston Dynamo and Vancouver Whitecaps moved off bottom spot with a 1-0 triumph at Sporting KC.
Inter Miami extended their unbeaten run to four games with a 2-1 home win over Portland Timbers, Columbus Crew triumphed 2-1 over 10-man Atlanta United and Toronto won 3-2 over Chicago Fire after two late Pozuelo goals.
LAFC led 2-1 and then 3-2 heading into the 86th minute but Cabral's late heroics earned a share of the points for the Galaxy in an MLS thriller on Saturday.
Signed from Bundesliga outfit Eintracht Frankfurt this month, Serbia international Joveljic – experiencing his first El Trafico derby – broke the deadlock in the 20th minute.
LAFC – who had lost a club record four consecutive matches as part of their record seven-match winless run heading into the fixture – were back on level terms courtesy of Cristian Arango's penalty on the stroke of half-time.
A moment of brilliance from Brian Rodriguez in the 58th minute gave LAFC a 2-1 lead, his stunning individual run evaded several Galaxy defenders before lashing home.
LAFC and the Galaxy traded goals as Jovejlic struck again in the 64th minute before Rodriguez restored the former's lead just two minutes later.
However, there was to be late drama – Cabral pounced on Araujo's cross and scored in front of a stunned home crowd.
The Galaxy are fourth in the Western Conference, six points behind leaders Seattle Sounders and 12 points clear of ninth-placed LAFC.
Elsewhere, Eastern Conference leaders New England Revolution were beaten 2-0 by New York City, who were fuelled by Valentin Castellanos' brace.
New York City equalled the longest home winning streak in club history, having also enjoyed a seven-game run from November 2017 to June 2018.
Nashville celebrated their first away victory of the season after taking down Atlanta United 2-0, DC United came from behind to defeat Philadelphia Union 3-1, Chicago Fire edged New York Red Bulls 1-0, Minnesota United topped Houston Dynamo 2-1 and Sporting Kansas City drew 1-1 with Colorado Rapids.
Two goals in the opening half hour seemingly had the Galaxy on their way to a comfortable win, but the outcome arguably belied the overall performance, with LAFC on the wrong end of three disallowed goals.
Carlos Vela was ruled offside twice along with Latif Blessing, whose late equaliser was chalked off in the eighth minute of injury time, after Cristian Arango pulled one back in the 79th minute.
Samuel Grandsir assisted twice for the Galaxy, with his first a pinpoint cross at the back post for Javier Hernandez, who cunningly drifted off Mamadou Fall's shoulder in 13th minute.
A second from Sega Coulibaly ultimately proved sufficient, as the Galaxy moved to four wins and one defeat in games where they scored the opening goal in the MLS this season.
The win puts them a point off LAFC in the Western Conference and tied for second with Real Salt Lake, who failed to move to top spot with a 2-2 draw to Toronto.
Philadelphia Union remained top of the Eastern Conference, meanwhile, after their 1-0 win over Columbus Crew.
Union took the lead in only the second minute and in calamitous circumstances, with Crew keeper Eloy Room mishandling a cross into the box, before the ball trickled into his own net.
Jim Curtin's side was content to absorb pressure as the Crew spent the rest of the match trying to break them down, and failed to create anything of substance.
Orlando City moved to second in the East with a 1-0 win over a ten-man Chicago Fire, leapfrogging New York Red Bulls, who lost 2-1 at home to Montreal.
In the other early game on the East Coast, a Leonardo Campana hat-trick gave Inter Miami their first win of the season, in a 3-2 victory over New England Revolution.
In the later games on Saturday, Nashville defeated Sporting KC 2-1, while Houston Dynamo fought from a 2-1 deficit to defeat San Jose Earthquakes 4-3.
Goals from Brandon Servania and Jesus Ferreira on either side of the interval handed Dallas an eventual 3-1 win over Colorado Rapids.
LAFC crushed the Whitecaps 6-0 at Banc of California Stadium on Wednesday, thanks to five goals in the opening 33 minutes.
The five goals scored in 32 minutes, 13 seconds was the fastest a team has netted five from kick-off in MLS history, according to Opta.
The Seattle Sounders had set the previous record (32:43) just 13 days ago against the San Jose Earthquakes.
LAFC went ahead in the second minute through Dejan Jakovic, who headed in a Brian Rodriguez corner.
Another corner led to Bradley Wright-Phillips finishing before the veteran forward produced another acrobatic effort in the 11th minute.
Things went from bad to worse for Vancouver when Ranko Veselinovic turned in a Rodriguez cross just three minutes later.
Diego Rossi made it 5-0 after a one-two with Mark-Anthony Kaye in the 33rd minute.
LAFC would have to wait until the second half for a sixth, Rodriguez's cross from the right leading to an Andy Rose own goal.
The win saw Los Angeles climb into sixth in the Western Conference, while Vancouver are ninth.
Orlando City extended their unbeaten run to seven games with a 2-1 win over Sporting Kansas City.
Tesho Akindele and Benji Michel scored before half-time and Orlando held on despite Johnny Russell's 53rd-minute strike.
The Earthquakes' struggles continued with a 5-0 loss to the Colorado Rapids.
San Jose have conceded five goals in a match five times this season, which is the most allowed by a team in a single campaign, according to Opta. The Earthquakes are just 13 games into their season.
Chicago Fire recorded a 4-0 win over the Houston Dynamo, while Inter Miami slumped to a 4-1 defeat against the New York Red Bulls.
History was made as Nashville beat DC United 1-0, with Tori Penso becoming the first female referee to oversee an MLS game in 20 years.
Columbus Crew retained their five-point lead atop the Eastern Conference thanks to a 2-1 win over Minnesota United.
The New England Revolution beat Montreal Impact 3-1, Toronto edged New York City 1-0 and Atlanta United overcame Dallas 1-0.
Cincinnati and Philadelphia Union played out a 0-0 draw, Real Salt Lake enjoyed a 2-0 win over the LA Galaxy and the Portland Timbers edged the Seattle Sounders 1-0.
LAFC entered Friday's contest having snapped a club-record four-match losing run with a 3-3 draw against LA Galaxy, though it extended the club-record winless streak (D3 L5) – the Los Angeles franchise had previously never gone more than five straight games without a win.
But Fall's double and goals from Cristian Arango and Eduard Atuesta ensured LAFC returned to winning ways at the expense of Sporting KC, who had lost just one of their last 12 MLS matches (W6 D5).
Rookie centre-back Fall opened the scoring in the 18th minute before doubling the lead just past the hour mark at Banc of California Stadium, where Sporting KC midfielder Roger Espinoza was sent off in the 58th minute.
Arango finished with authority to make it 3-0 with 19 minutes remaining and after Sporting KC's Ilie Sanchez had a goal ruled out for offside, Atuesta converted a penalty three minutes from the end.
LAFC are eighth in the Western Conference, just outside the play-off positions and 15 points behind leaders Seattle Sounders, while they are 13 points adrift of second-placed Sporting KC.
Elsewhere, Eastern Conference pacesetters and Supporters' Shield leaders New England Revolution edged Philadelphia Union 1-0.
Despite Arnor Traustason's red card in the second half, the Revolution stayed 14 points clear atop the standings after Nashville defeated New York City 3-1.
Portland Timbers were 2-0 winners over Houston Dynamo.
