When Inter Miami signed Lionel Messi in July, they understood that Messi still had goals outside of club football. Winning the 2022 World Cup with Argentina didn’t prompt Messi to retire from international duty. In fact, it’s been quite the opposite. He’s actively involved in Argentina’s 2026 World Cup qualifying process.
Messi also has his eyes set on a second consecutive Copa América title in 2024, with this tournament being hosted by his new home, the United States.
It’s clear that his love for Argentina’s national team remains strong and, at 36 years old, Messi still wants to win more trophies. The 2021 Copa América title and a dramatic World Cup final victory have tightened Messi’s bond with both his national team and his nation. The sense of brotherhood within the current world champions is something that Messi clearly doesn’t want to let go of.
That means that Messi’s time with Inter Miami is a juggling act of sorts. A loaded 2024 calendar for club and country will force Messi, Inter Miami and Argentina to manage his minutes carefully, with valuable learnings from Messi’s first four months in the United States.
The end-to-end transition style that dominates MLS matches is vastly different from the possession-dominant football that Messi previously played throughout his career. MLS is a physically taxing league and surely Messi became aware of that immediately. Pulling double duty with Argentina in a compressed schedule has already had ill effects.
Messi arrived in South Florida straight from his summer vacation, dropping into the middle of what had been a disastrous Inter Miami season. He played his first game with the club on July 21, then led Miami to the inaugural Leagues Cup final on August 19, playing seven matches in less than a month (two of which included extra time). Miami defeated Nashville SC on penalties to claim the club’s first-ever trophy, with Messi leading the competition in scoring.
After that final, Messi played an additional four matches with Inter Miami over 12 days before departing for international duty. He then injured his hamstring in a World Cup qualifier against Ecuador. The injury forced Messi to miss five games with Miami as they attempted a desperate and improbable playoff push.
During that time, Inter Miami head coach Tata Martino did his best to avert a potential club crisis. Muscle fatigue was the diagnosis that Martino gave reporters when asked about Messi’s status. No risks would be taken, Martino said. Inter Miami was chasing a playoff spot, but with Messi missing from match days as he gradually worked his way back to fitness, Inter Miami’s already slim playoff hopes slipped away. They have since failed to qualify for the postseason.
Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni was in a similar position. He said repeatedly that Messi would play if he felt good enough to do so. The stakes were obviously much higher there, though. CONMEBOL World Cup qualification is a grueling, two-year process. Argentina is undefeated in qualifying under Scaloni and has not conceded a goal since the World Cup final. The team is young, deep and extremely confident.
Yet, Messi remains irreplaceable. He’s a national hero and the type of on-field captain that his teammates revere, if not idolize. His football isn’t letting him down, either. He had a brace in Argentina’s 2-0 win over Peru on Tuesday night in Lima, his first 90-minute performance in over a month. As a result of starting that match, he was unable to play in Inter Miami’s ultimately meaningless match against Charlotte FC the following night. Messi was on hand to watch his teammates draw 2-2 with Charlotte, though.
On Tuesday night, Messi addressed Miami’s end of season reality.
“It’s honestly a shame. We came close,” Messi said regarding Inter Miami’s position in the MLS standings. “I missed the last few games and we had several injuries. The month of July was really hard on us because we played every three days, and we traveled. But we won an important tournament for the club and for next season.”
Messi also reiterated his commitment to Argentina and the rumors that he’d play on loan with FC Barcelona over the winter.
“I’ll try to return (to the national team) in the best shape possible in November, if I can be here,” he said. “Then I’ll enjoy my vacation, enjoy Argentina. It’ll be the first time that I’ll have so many days in December to be with my family. In January I’ll return (to Miami) for preseason and I’ll prepare myself in the best way possible, like I always do.”
Inter Miami will play in North America’s equivalent of the Champions League in 2024. There’s the U.S. Open Cup, as well, which Miami nearly won in September. Then there’s the 34-game MLS regular season, the second edition of the month-long Leagues Cup, the Copa América, and six World Cup qualifiers that Messi will have to contend with. Another six qualifiers will be played in 2025.
One can’t accuse Messi of a lack of commitment to Inter Miami. He has proven that MLS play and his new club are important. His decision not to push for a loan back to Europe over the winter reinforces that. Inter Miami was a project in need of credibility. Messi provided that in a way that even surprised the club’s owners. His competitiveness and leadership skills turned an average team into a tournament winner. He also attempted to come back from injury early, which led to an additional setback.
But Inter Miami won’t supplant Argentina in Messi’s pecking order of priorities. That shouldn’t surprise anybody. And in Martino, himself a former Argentina national team manager, Messi has a coach who is aligned with his ambitions.
“I have managed three different national teams,” Martino said on Tuesday. “I’m a pro-national team type of coach. Whenever possible, I’m always going to support players representing their national teams.”
In order to get the best out of his No. 10, Martino will have to consider resting a fully fit Messi several times next season, a scenario that MLS fans will also have to accept. That will put pressure on Miami’s front office to field a team in 2024 and 2025 that is an Eastern Conference championship contender, even without their star player on the field. Naturally, Inter Miami and Martino will be criticized when these rest days happen, especially considering Miami’s decision to drastically raise season ticket prices next season.
Messi will turn 37 next year, but his sporting commitments are not diminishing by any means. He is the face of his nation and of his club, at a time when Argentina’s football federation (AFA), and Inter Miami, have both begun to expand their footprint beyond their borders. AFA is establishing a presence in Asia, the Middle East and in the U.S, while Inter Miami will tour China in November. Messi’s global celebrity status is the obvious hook as both entities court corporate sponsors.
Given this, Inter Miami and Argentina will have to agree to share Messi. But this could be more of a win-win situation for the four-year-old club than it might appear. Inter Miami has Messi through the 2025 season. Even if he doesn’t play the maximum number of matches with his club, two additional seasons, and possibly a third, should be plenty of time to enjoy one of the best athletes of all time. And when he plays and excels for Argentina, he elevates both Inter Miami and MLS. No player in the league’s 29-year history has been a better pitchman than Messi — not even David Beckham, whose England career ended during his time in LA.
Messi’s legacy in America is at stake, yes, but his thirst to win two consecutive Copa América trophies and become the only Argentina captain to win two straight World Cups is too big of a carrot to ignore, and again, what a boon to the league it would be if he continues his international domination while firmly entrenched in MLS. After initially putting his participation at the 2026 World Cup in doubt, Messi, the favorite to win the 2023 Ballon d’Or, looks primed to help Argentina defend their 2022 title.
Messi signed with Inter Miami at a time when he feels more connected to his national team than ever before. This much has been clear from the start. And while Miami and MLS want to maximize Messi’s stint in the U.S., Argentina isn’t ready to let him walk away just yet.
“Let’s keep in mind that he is still here,” Scaloni said sternly on Tuesday when asked to visualize Argentina without Messi. “This way of thinking, when he’s here, when he’s not. The truth is that he is still active, so let’s leave him alone. We’re used to committing hara-kiri on ourselves. It’s incredible. Leave him be. Otherwise this will never go away. Are we already retiring him? What are we, crazy?”
(Photo: Matias Baglietto/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
