Messi’s Endorsement: Miami’s Burgeoning BeFootball Community is Ready for the “GOAT”
Supporters of Messi Inter Miami claim that South Florida’s football scene is growing and will “explode” once Messi moves there.
Florida’s Miami Even before Lionel Messi decided to play for Inter Miami, a mural of the World Cup winner welcomed visitors as they entered the Argentinian restaurant Fiorito.
But, a new invitation to the player has been written in Spanish on the chalkboard that hangs outside the restaurant’s entrance: “Messi, the best Milanesa in Miami awaits you.”
Messi is believed to enjoy the cuisine Milanesa a la Napolitana, which consists of breaded steak or chicken served with tomato sauce, sliced gammon and mozzarella cheese. And once the celebrity comes in Florida, Maximiliano Alvarez, the co-owner of Fiorito, wants to prepare it for him.
In regards to Messi’s impending presence to the Major League Soccer (MLS) team, Alvarez predicts that “it’s going to be something really enormous for the city, for the sport.” “He’s going to change the MLS as a whole drastically.”
After a two-year stint with Paris Saint-Germain, Messi, who turns 36 on Saturday, stated earlier this month that he wanted to transfer to Inter Miami. He turned down offers from the Saudi league and the opportunity to play for his former team, Barcelona.
Even though the deal’s specifics are still being worked out, the city’s enthusiastic football supporters are over the moon.
They claimed that Messi’s involvement in the team will make South Florida a popular destination for football fans and that his talents will help Inter Miami, which has struggled since its founding in 2020, turn things around.
“It’s huge for the team and huge for the league. I think it enhances the on-field performance, definitely, hopefully, said Ukeba Simmons, a captain of the Black Herons United fans’ group.
“Crisis moment”
Simmons, who has followed Inter Miami since they first began competing, claimed that there are still some concerns to be resolved about Messi’s place on the pitch and the players that will be brought in to help the side advance.
Yet for the time being, he is thrilled at the prospect of frequently seeing the Argentina World Cup victor in person.
It’s really amazing to be able to watch probably the best player to ever play the game just a few miles from your home.
Jorge Mas, the managing owner of Inter Miami, told regional media this week that he anticipated Messi’s debut with the team to take place on July 21. He referred to the player’s entrance as a “seminal moment” for the US version of the sport. The Miami Herald newspaper reported Mas as stating, “I cannot overemphasise the gravity of this announcement.”
Even if the player’s debut game is still a few weeks away, signs of Messi-mania have begun to surface around the city.
In Miami’s thriving Wynwood neighbourhood, a mural of Messi wearing Inter Miami’s vivid pink shirt first appeared earlier this month.
Local media outlets have been reporting on the player’s transfer frequently, along with other potential additions to Inter Miami’s roster, such as numerous of Messi’s former Barcelona teammates, including Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba, and Luis Suarez.
The substantial immigrant populations from the Caribbean and South America in South Florida would ensure that the Spanish-speaking players would not encounter a linguistic barrier there.
Ticket prices
In 2018, Mas founded Inter Miami alongside billionaire José Mas and former English player David Beckham, promising to pursue a “global vision” that prioritises the neighbourhood.
The arrival of Messi may put that promise to the test. Tickets for Inter Miami’s home games, which once cost less than $50, now cost hundreds of dollars, assuming they can even be found.
There have been worries that devoted supporters won’t be able to attend games due to the cost, even though many supporters have appreciated the increased attention their young club is receiving.
A 18,000-seat stadium in Fort Lauderdale, north of the city, is where Inter Miami plays. Although there are plans to increase the venue’s capacity to roughly 22,000 by filling in its corners, there may not be enough space for Messi’s fans and visitors.
The team will eventually relocate to Miami Freedom Park, a 25,000-seat stadium that is still under construction. The project is now underway, and it should be finished by the middle of 2025.
The increase in ticket costs, according to Nicolas Abad, head of communications for the Siege Supporters Club, has been “crazy.”
“That is a major concern for all of the supporters. Unfortunately, it seems like most of us will be priced out. Perhaps, the group can contribute to finding answers.
The rise in demand is evidence of Messi’s early impact on the group. Abad claimed that he was receiving requests for tickets from people he had not heard from in a very long time.
He said, “There’s no justification for my ex-ex-boyfriend girlfriend’s roommate’s to text me.”
He continued by saying that the amount of World Cup interest may be used to gauge football fanaticism.
Football culture
According to Abad, “It seems like every World Cup, it just grows larger and bigger and bigger.” “And the last one was enormous. Simply said, there were a tonne of watch parties. Wherever you looked, flags were abundant. It appeared that Miami was hosting the World Cup rather than Qatar.
Miami is already a diverse “football city,” according to Alex Windley, a freelance writer who covers the MLS and Inter Miami, and Messi’s transfer will only enhance that reputation. Miami is anticipated to host matches in both the 2026 World Cup and the 2024 Copa America.
All eyes will practically be on South Florida with Messi going down here, she told Arab news.
“I think it’ll really explode in the next four or five years,” said one observer of the football scene. “It was always a hotbed, but now that Messi has been announced, and with the Copa America and the World Cup coming up.”
In essence, supporters maintained that Miami is ready for Messi because of its football culture as well as its sandy beaches and festive atmosphere.
Messi’s choice has been compared to Beckham’s decision to sign with the LA Galaxy in 2007. Even if their star power is comparable, the Argentinian player will be moving to a country that is much more knowledgeable about and enthusiastic about football.
For instance, the Miami Fusion stopped operating because of a lack of patronage and income. Inter Miami, the de facto successor, is currently linked to a number of elite players and has signed Messi in deals that are reportedly for tens of millions of dollars.
wishing for better outcomes
With 15 points from 17 games, Inter Miami are still last in the Eastern Conference, 25 points behind FC Cincinnati, the conference’s top team. But there is still some chance. The group is only seven points away from the final playoff spot in ninth place.
There are 15 teams in the Eastern Conference as opposed to 14 in the Western Conference. The top nine teams in each conference compete in a knockout tournament following the regular season, with the victor being declared the MLS Cup champions.
With 15 points from 17 games, Inter Miami are still last in the Eastern Conference, 25 points behind FC Cincinnati, the conference’s top team. But there is still some chance. The group is only seven points away from the final playoff spot in ninth place
Abad claimed that after Inter Miami was created, it was not difficult to attract supporters. There were “leftover” supporters from the Miami Fusion, an MLS team that disbanded in 2002, and with football becoming more and more popular in South Florida, many were ready for a local team.
Many supporters are optimistic that Messi will help the Miamians turn things around.
According to Simmons of the Black Herons United, Messi can inspire the players already at Inter Miami in addition to drawing in additional star players.
“You would anticipate that everyone would rise to the occasion and be motivated by playing at that calibre of talent… And that ought to affect video games.
Windley claimed that the team is lacking certain “missing components,” but it appears that there are plans to restructure the lineup and add players to help Messi.
Nobody appeared to have any doubts about the World Cup winner’s capacity to perform his fabled “Messi magic” moments on American soil, in which he conjures something from nothing.
“He’ll succeed. He is Messi. Everyone is enchanted by his gentler demeanour and the way he handles situations both on and off the pitch, according to Windley. Thus, Messi’s transfer will be seamless.
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