Tag: Lionel Messi

MLS superstar Lionel Messi wants to follow in the footsteps of Inter Miami’s David Beckham and become a club owner after he hangs up his boots.

The 38-year-old Argentina legend, who is signed with Miami through 2028, said he prefers ownership over coaching as his second act.

“I don’t see myself as a coach,” the two-time MLS MVP and eight-time Ballon d’Or winner told Argentine streaming channel Luzu TV in an interview. “I want to have my own club, start from the bottom and make it big. Being able to give kids the opportunity to develop and achieve something important. If I had to choose, that would appeal to me more.”

Messi, who guided Inter Miami to their first MLS Cup championship in 2025, has a future minority ownership stake in the MLS club in his contract.

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In May, he helped long time former MLS and FC Barcelona teammate Luis Suarez to launch a new fourth-division club Deportivo LSM in Suarez’s native Uruguay.

“I want to thank Luis for giving me this opportunity, for inviting me to join him and share this project that he has been working on for many years and that has grown a lot,” Messi said at the time, per ESPN Uruguay.

“Being able to be a part of this is an honor. I hope to contribute everything I can to continue growing this club and to be by your side.”

Messi and Miami begin the 2026 MLS regular season on Feb. 21 at Los Angeles FC.

Lionel Messi will be making his customary trip back to his home city of Rosario, Argentina, this Christmas to spend the holiday season with his family. The veteran superstar will have to alter his plans though, following a fortuitous car accident.

Messi had been due to attend the wedding of his sister Maria Sol on the third of January in Argentina, but the big day has now been postponed. As explained by Marca, Maria Sol was involved in a car accident in Miami this week.

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Maria Sol’s life is not in danger, but she did suffer serious injuries, reports Jorge de Brito following conversations with Celia Cuccitini, her mother. After losing control of the car, which caused the crash, Maria Sol sustained two fractured vertebrae, severe burns, a fractured two and an ankle injury. As such, Maria Sol will spend the coming weeks in recovery, and not as she had planned.

Maria Sol is engaged to Julian Arellano, who has known the youngest of the Messi siblings since their childhood. Arellano incidentally is a coach in the academy at Inter Miami, and the couple live in Florida near her big brother. Like most of the Messi family, Maria Sol has opted to keep a low profile in light of Lionel’s global celebrity.

Lionel Messi won his second consecutive Major League Soccer Most Valuable Player award on Tuesday after propelling Inter Miami to the MLS title and leading the league in goals.

Messi became the first player to win back-to-back MLS MVP awards and only the second player in the league to capture two MVP awards after Preki in 1997 and 2003.

 “I’m happy to receive this award and be the first in the history of this league to win it in two consecutive years,” Messi said. “I’m very thankful.”

The 38-year-old forward, who led Argentina to the 2022 World Cup crown, scored 29 goals in the regular season – the fourth-most in any MLS campaign – and set up 19 others to claim the MLS Golden Boot.

 “I’m thankful for this recognition,” Messi said. “It’s always nice to receive individual awards but I want to share it with my teammates. I was also fortunate to win the MLS Golden Boot thanks to the help of my teammates.”

Messi, who signed a three-year contract extension with Miami in October, also became only the second player to lead the league in regular-season goals and assists, joining Toronto’s Sebastian Giovinco in 2015.

Messi also netted six goals and created nine others in this year’s MLS playoffs, which concluded last weekend with Inter Miami beating Vancouver 3-1 for its first MLS Cup title, Messi delivering two key assists in the triumph to claim MLS Cup MVP honours.

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It’s the latest award in a trophy haul for the South American maestro that includes a record eight Ballon d’Or titles, three FIFA Men’s Best Player awards and two FIFA World Cup Golden Balls.

Messi was a runaway season MVP award winner with 70.43 per cent of total voting compared to 11.15 per cent for runner-up Anders Dreyer of San Diego FC. Messi took 83.05 per cent of media votes, 73.08 per cent of club votes and 55.17 per cent of player votes.

He became the first MLS player with 10 multi-goal games in a season, breaking the old mark of eight shared by Stern John in 1998, Mamadou Diallo in 2000 and Zlatan Ibrahimovic in 2019.

In 2024, Messi won the MLS MVP award with 20 goals and 16 assists over 19 matches.

Messi joined Inter Miami in July 2023 and helped the Herons hoist the Leagues Cup, a tournament for MLS and Mexican League clubs, that year and take the 2024 MLS Supporters’ Shield with a league-best 74 points in the regular season.

Superstar Lionel Messi, the MLS Golden Boot winner and MLS MVP favourite, leads an MLS Best XI list this season that features representatives from nine clubs.

With 29 goals and 19 assists, the Inter Miami forward was one goal contribution shy of the league-record 49 set by Carlos Vela in 2019 and could be the first back-to-back MVP in league history.

Argentina’s Messi is joined on the list, announced by MLS on Wednesday, by players from seven different countries, including six players who are honoured on the list for the first time.

The Philadelphia Union, with defenders Jakob Glesnes and Kai Wagner, and the Vancouver Whitecaps, with defender Tristan Blackmon and midfielder Sebastian Berhalter, were the only teams with more than one member.

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The Best XI is determined annually by the media, MLS players and MLS club technical staff members.

The 2025 MLS Best XI:

Forwards: Denis Bouanga (LAFC), Anders Dreyer (San Diego FC), Lionel Messi (Inter Miami CF)

Midfielders: Sebastian Berhalter (Vancouver Whitecaps), Evander (FC Cincinnati), Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders)

Defenders: Tristan Blackmon (Vancouver Whitecaps), Alex Freeman (Orlando City), Jakob Glesnes (Philadelphia Union), Kai Wagner (Philadelphia Union)

Goalkeeper: Dayne St. Clair (Minnesota United FC).

Lionel Messi scored twice late on as Inter Miami fought back to beat Orlando City 3-1 and reach the final of the Leagues Cup on Wednesday.

After missing two straight matches with a right thigh injury, Messi converted a penalty in the 77^th  minute to pull Inter level at 1-1 then combined with Jordi Alba to put the hosts ahead in the 88^th .

Telasco Segovia added a third in injury time as Miami returned to the final of the Leagues Cup, the cross-border competition featuring teams from Major League Soccer and Mexico’s Liga-MX.

Inter won it in 2023, Messi’s first season in MLS.

They will face reigning MLS Cup champions Los Angeles Galaxy or Seattle Sounders in Sunday’s final.

Orlando will play in a third-place game, and the top three finishers in the tournament earn berths in the 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup.

In a high-energy first half, Croatia’s Marco Pasalic silenced the crowd at Miami’s Chase Stadium with a goal in first-half added time.

Luis Muriel slipped a pass into the area and Maximiliano Falcon’s attempt to clear it instead saw the ball deflect back to Pasalic, who rifled a left-footed shot into the net.

Inter players’ appealed saying the ball hit Pasalic’s arm but VAR confirmed the goal.

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Orlando, who had twice humbled their cross-state rivals this season, continued to stymie Inter in the second half.

Luis Suarez forced a save from Orlando keeper Pedro Gallese while Messi twice threatened in the area only to find himself swamped in a sea of defenders.

Inter coach Javier Mascherano was visibly frustrated as he watched from the stands, having received a red card during the quarter-final win over Tigres UANL.

Orlando lost some momentum in the 59th minute when Guatemalan referee Walter Lopez denied them a penalty shout after Sergio Busquets’ foul on Ivan Angulo.

And the momentum shifted irrevocably Miami’s way in the 74th minute when substitute Tadeo Allende drew a foul in the box.

David Brekalo’s challenge included a tug on Allende’s jersey and earned him a second yellow card.

He departed as Messi went to the spot, the Argentine great firing past Gallese into the lower right corner of the net.

Eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi sparked joyous celebrations with his second goal 11 minutes later.

Orlando had won two prior matches against Miami this season by a combined 7-1 margin, including a 4-1 rout earlier this month.

From Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi facing former side Paris Saint-Germain to Real Madrid meeting Juventus and Chelsea taking on Benfica, AFP Sport looks ahead to the Club World Cup last 16.

Palmeiras v Botafogo:

All four Brazilian representatives reached the last 16 and at least one will be in the quarter-finals, as Palmeiras and Botafogo face each other today, June 28 in Philadelphia.

 Botafogo are the reigning Brazilian and South American champions and beat European champions PSG on the way to qualifying from their group at Atletico Madrid’s expense.

Sao Paulo side Palmeiras – featuring Brazil prodigy and future Chelsea winger Estevao Willian – won their group and are above Botafogo in the Brazilian league. However, Botafogo are unbeaten in their last five meetings with Palmeiras, including the two legs of a Copa Libertadores last-16 tie last year.

Benfica v Chelsea:

Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea finished second in their group but avoided a strong Bayern Munich side by doing so, pitting them against Benfica today, June 28, in Charlotte.

The Portuguese powerhouses, who boast veteran playmaker Angel Di Maria, edged the German giants in their final group game.

Benfica will believe they can upset their inconsistent Premier League opposition and former Benfica midfielder Enzo Fernandez. New Chelsea striker Liam Delap is looking to continue adding to his tally after getting off the mark in the group stage.

PSG vs. Inter Miami:

Messi’s Inter Miami were a surprise package in the group stage, beating Porto on their way to progressing to the last 16, but a late collapse against Palmeiras meant they finished second and must face the Argentine playmaker’s former side PSG tomorrow, June 29, in Atlanta.

This season PSG ended a long wait to win the Champions League for the first time and Luis Enrique’s side are expected to vanquish their MLS opponents, but Botafogo beat them in the group stage to prove they are not untouchable.

Flamengo v Bayern

Brazilian side Flamengo stunned Chelsea in the group phase to claim top spot but must overcome the might of Vincent Kompany’s Bayern tomorrow, June 29, in Miami  if they are to progress.

With Harry Kane, Michael Olise and a Thomas Mueller looking to end his time at Bayern with a new trophy, the possession-hungry Bundesliga giants have as much firepower as anyone left in the tournament.

Highly rated Flamengo coach Filipe Luis has his work cut out to keep Bayern at bay.

Inter Milan v Fluminense

Recent runners-up in the Champions League, Inter ground out wins over Urawa Red Diamonds and River Plate to finish top of their group and will now hope to avoid becoming the latest European team to stumble against Brazilian opposition on Monday, June 30, in Charlotte.

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Fluminense, of Rio, held Borussia Dortmund en route to qualifying for this stage and will be full of motivation to claim a major scalp against Cristian Chivu’s side.

Man City v Al Hilal

City come into the knockout phase in ominous form after being the only team at the tournament to win all three group games. They have scored 11 times in their last two matches, with a 5-2 destruction of Juventus coming after they put six past Al Ain of the United Arab Emirates.

A game against Al Hilal, the 2021 Asian champion on Monday, June 30, in Orlando , will give City no reason to be afraid, even if the Saudi club boast numerous former stars of leading European leagues, including Joao Cancelo.

Real Madrid v Juventus

This is a clash between two traditional European titans who have met 21 times before. There have been two Champions League finals between the clubs, both won by Real.

A 5-2 defeat for Juventus against Manchester City suggests they may find the going tough against Madrid.

Real are adapting to life under a new coach in Xabi Alonso, who experimented with a three-man defence against Salzburg. He will hope to have Kylian Mbappe back after the Frenchman missed the group stage with illness on kTuesday, July 1, in Miami .

 Dortmund vs. Monterrey

Dortmund coach Niko Kovac has not held back on expressing his feelings about having to play in extreme heat at the tournament so he will be happy the game against Mexican side Monterrey is at the covered and air-conditioned Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Tuesday, July 1, in Atlanta.

Despite their complaints Dortmund have grown into the tournament. They face former Real Madrid star Sergio Ramos and a Monterrey team that has impressed, notably a creditable draw against Inter Milan.

Lionel Messi has won the UEFA Champions League, the Copa America, and, of course, the FIFA World Cup, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t grown tired of winning more trophies.

He is fascinated and motivated by the “amazing opportunity” to win the new 32-team FIFA Club World Cup, which kicks off on 14 June when Messi and Inter Miami CF meet Al Ahly FC in the opening match at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium.

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“It’s an interesting competition. Having the chance to be part of it is exciting,” Messi told FIFA. “The expectations I have are different to the ones I had when I played for other teams, but I’m eager and I look forward to competing against the best (teams) and doing well.”