Lionel Messi has accomplished his most amazing accomplishment to date: he will be joining Inter Miami in Major League Soccer (MLS).
After months, perhaps years, of rumors, Messi finally confirmed on Wednesday that he had made the choice to join a Miami team that has been coached by another legendary figure in soccer, David Beckham, since its formation but hasn't exactly made an impression on the field.
That most likely will alter shortly. Shortly before Messi made his choice public in talks with the Spanish news agencies Mundo Deportivo and Sport, one of Inter Miami's owners, Jorge Mas, shared a picture of a darkly silhouetted Messi shirt on Twitter.
There was widespread speculation that Messi will eventually decide to sign with Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia, following longtime rival Cristiano Ronaldo to a country where several teams are now supported by the state's sovereign wealth fund. Another option was to return to Barcelona, a legendary team where he spent the most of his career.
But in the end, he made the decision that shocked a lot of people. Messi is moving to the MLS. Although certain last-minute arrangements still need to be sorted out, he indicated in the interviews on Wednesday that he has decided to "continue my path" in Miami.
“After winning the World Cup and not being able to return to Barcelona, it was my turn to go to the league of the United States to live football in another way,” Messi said.
He declined to accept the cash. The recollections weren't ones he choose. Instead, he decided on Miami. Following exhibition games with Argentina against Australia in Beijing on June 15 and Indonesia in Jakarta four days later, Messi is expected to make his Inter Miami debut sometime in July.
“We are pleased that Lionel Messi has stated that he intends to join Inter Miami and Major League Soccer this summer,” read a statement from MLS. “Although work remains to finalize a formal agreement, we look forward to welcoming one of the greatest soccer players of all time to our league.”
After spending two years at Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner—the award presented annually to the world's finest player—makes his transfer. Messi completed the single big unchecked box on his résumé in December by guiding Argentina to the World Cup victory, therefore at the age of 35, he has nothing more to prove in the game.
One of the best goal scorers in the history of the game, Messi has scored more than 800 goals across his club and national team careers. He has scored 102 goals in more than 17 years of playing for Argentina against 38 different national teams, with 16 of those goals coming on American territory. In the World Cup final against France last year, which finished 3-3 but Argentina won 4-2 on penalties, he scored twice.
He has reached the very peak of the competition. He has won the Champions League four times, and Ronaldo has 140 goals in the premier club tournament, while he has 129. Messi has won ten La Liga titles, two Ligue 1 titles, seven Copa del Reys, three Club World Cups, a Copa América, and an Olympic gold medal for Argentina. He has also won seven Copa del Reys.
And now he joins an MLS team in last place in the Eastern Conference, only a few days after Phil Neville, the team's hand-picked coach from two years ago, was fired.
The largest boost for American soccer on the professional level may have ever come from Messi's choice to play in the United States. Although some of the biggest names in the game, such Pelé, Franz Beckenbauer, Thierry Henry, and Beckham himself, went to the United States toward the end of their careers, securing a player who is still nowhere near the top of his game and has recently won the World Cup is simply enormous.
“This is obviously the biggest signing that they’ve brought in,” said Nashville defender Walker Zimmerman, a U.S. national team regular. “It’s kind of reminiscent of Beckham when he came originally. You saw how the league has kind of changed in the 15 years since he arrived, and hopefully 15 years from now we’re seeing all the growth from this addition to the league. I think it’s a great thing. I think it’ll be great for the sport in this country, especially ahead of the 2026 World Cup. And I’m excited to play against him.”
Bringing Messi to Miami's pitch required months of talks with MLS, the Miami ownership, Adidas, and even Apple participating in a creative presentation. In his own words, Lionel Messi tells the definitive story of his incredible career with the Argentina national football team, giving an intimate and unprecedented look at his quest for a legacy-defining World Cup victory. Apple, a broadcast partner of Major League Soccer, announced Tuesday that it will air a still-untitled four-part documentary series "featuring exclusive behind-the-scenes access to global superstar Lionel Messi."
And now Miami will be a chapter in his story.
From its creation to its first game, Inter Miami required six years, and its first four seasons haven't exactly been great.
Messi is joining a squad that recently sacked its coach and is currently bottom in the Eastern Conference. In two of its first three seasons, it entered the playoffs, but it has yet to end a campaign with a winning record or even a positive goal difference.
However, there had been signs for weeks that Miami was still very much in the running for Messi. This spring, Messi met with Beckham, a co-owner of Inter Miami, and the meeting was almost immediately made public to let everyone know that the parties were still in communication. The MLS team informed supporters that the only option to obtain tickets for the second half of this season was to buy a season-ticket package. Messi and his family also own numerous pieces of opulent real estate in South Florida.
Everywhere in the world, including Miami, he is a huge draw. Kyle Lowry, a guard for the Miami Heat, missed a game due to injury two days after Argentina won the World Cup and sat on the bench for his team. That evening, he donned a Messi jersey.
Approximately 45 minutes north of the Miami location where the team plans to construct a permanent structure, Inter Miami continues to play home games in a temporary facility in Fort Lauderdale.
Inter Miami has struggled to attract the same attention as the region's top professional teams, including the Miami Heat of basketball, the Miami Marlins of baseball, the Miami Dolphins of football, and the Florida Panthers of hockey, despite the area's pronounced Latin influence and the fact that more people might actually refer to the sport as ftbol than soccer.
Messi has the power to instantly alter that. He quickly ascends to the top of the MLS, making everything Miami does noteworthy.
His choice puts an end to a crazy saga. Messi was made famous by Barcelona, but the money problems that led the team to release him two years ago are still a problem.
“I heard that they’d have to sell players or lower players’ salaries and the truth is, I didn’t want to go through that,” Messi said Wednesday.
There are no financial problems with Saudi Arabia, and rumors that he might end up there grew after Messi traveled there without permission. Near the end of his time with the French club, PSG suspended him, and some supporters turned on him, booing and jeering him.
Everyone anticipated that he wouldn't rejoin PSG. Few probably believed he was going to Miami. But here he is, a superstar moving to Miami in a move that may even be more unexpected than LeBron James's 13-year-old arrival to join the Heat.
