A pair of international stars will be on Major League Soccer’s biggest stage when Lionel Messi and Inter Miami host Thomas Muller and the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday in the MLS Cup final at Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Both clubs will be chasing their first MLS title, with an opportunity to raise the Philip F. Anschutz trophy.
Messi is all but certain to win a second consecutive MLS MVP after scoring 29 goals and assisting 19 more in the regular season. But Saturday is also the realization of the vision that convinced Messi to make the move to MLS in the summer of 2023.
In addition to a lucrative contract and numerous new American marketing opportunities, joining Inter Miami also has resulted in a club constructed in his own image.
First there were his former FC Barcelona teammates Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba and later Luis Suarez who joined the Herons. Then this summer, Messi’s national team colleague Rodrigo De Paul made the move from Atletico Madrid. Promising teenager Mateo Silvetti joined on loan from Newell’s Old Boys, Messi’s boyhood club in Argentina.
Just before the playoffs began, Messi and Inter Miami announced a three-year contract extension that will see him retire in MLS.
While the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner has been exceptional this postseason, with six goals and seven assists in five matches, he admits to a sense of contentment.