Inter Miami honoured Argentine sensation Lionel Messi with his eighth Ballon d’Or on Friday, but their celebration friendly match resulted in a 2-1 loss to rival MLS team New York City FC.
On a joyous evening that started with Messi thanking supporters for the warm welcome he had received in Florida, the loss—in a game between two clubs long out of the hunt for the MLS championship—was but a footnote.
Even though DRV PNK’s MLS season ended last month, the stadium was almost full of supporters, many of whom were yelling “Messi! Messi!” simultaneously.
“Thank you for being here, for this beautiful tribute,” Messi said after raising the trophy he’d collected in Paris last month. “I have been here for a short time, but it seems like a lot of time.
“I want to thank all the people of Miami, not only those who are here, but in the city in general, for the treatment I and my family have received during this time.
“They showed me a lot of affection, they made me feel at home.”
Arriving to Inter Miami in July, the 36-year-old superstar was greeted with a rousing welcome. In August, he led the struggling team to victory in a Leagues Cup competition including clubs from the Mexican and MLS leagues.
He made his Miami debut in the MLS regular season on August 26 as a second-half substitute. In Inter’s 2-0 victory over the New York Red Bulls, he scored the game’s only goal to end an 11-game losing skid.
However, Messi’s late-season leg injury prevented him from leading Miami from the league basement to the MLS Cup playoffs.
Despite this, he has energised the American league, as evidenced by the surge in jersey sales, MLS season pass viewing subscription purchases, and ticket sales at every Miami game.
While the crowd was yelling for him once more towards the end of Friday’s game, NYCFC prevailed thanks to goals from Talles Magno and Julian Fernandez, and he was unable to provide an equaliser.
Messi’s most recent Ballon d’Or honours accomplishments made long before he joined the Major League Soccer (MLS), including his impressive efforts during the World Cup in Qatar last year, where he scored seven goals and was named the best player in the competition while leading Argentina to victory.
Although Miami will defend its League Cup crown and play in both the US Open Cup and CONCACAF Champions Cup in addition to the MLS season, Messi stated that he was looking to build on that victory next season.
According to him, “I had no doubt that we were going to have a good time, that we were going to enjoy ourselves and today I have even less doubts that next year is going to be much better.”
