Inter Miami beat the Whitecaps 3-1 in the MLS Cup final on Saturday at Chase Stadium.  Credit: Getty Image


Inter Miami beat the Whitecaps 3-1 in the MLS Cup final on Saturday at Chase Stadium, which was “packed with pink-clad fans.” The only parts of the stadium not in pink were “sections 126 and 127,” which is where “more than 1,000 Whitecaps fans congregated.” Inter Miami’s first MLS title came in a “tense, chippy game with 45 fouls.” Inter Miami F Lionel Messi said, “This is the moment that I have been waiting for and that we, as a team were waiting for. It’s very beautiful for all of us.”

Stars showed up for the occasion, including singer Marc Anthony, Basketball HOFer Steve Nash, USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino, former USMNT coach Gregg Berhalter, actress Jessica Alba and actor Danny Ramirez. Inter Miami co-owners David Beckham and Jose Mas were the “first to arrive at the stadium.” All of the owners were “emotional afterward” and “hugging Messi and other players during the trophy ceremony.” Beckham said, “My journey with this started almost 20 years ago with the L.A. Galaxy, leaving Real Madrid to join the MLS at that time, was criticized by a lot of people, but I always believed in the sport here. I always believed I’d be able to help the sport grow here in a small way. And thankfully, I’ve done that over the years” (MIAMI HERALD, 12/7).

The victory “completes a dramatic turnaround for a club that was languishing in the MLS basement” when Messi arrived in Miami as the biggest signing in league history in July 2023 (ESPN.com, 12/7). Inter Miami will “enter its next era” by opening Miami Freedom Park, a “home more befitting of a Messi-led club.” Inter Miami also is “ushering MLS toward its next iteration,” with Messi “the catalyst.” Messi lifting the MLS Cup is an “image that will now be seen around the world,” and it is an “unprecedented advertisement for North American soccer.” That “opens the door for MLS to seize the moment.” If Messi in Miami 1.0 was about “proving an unrivaled star can help MLS break through globally,” Messi in Miami 2.0 is about “taking that promise to new heights” (THE ATHLETIC, 12/7). 

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