Inter Miami Ticket Prices Jump 1,000% After Messi Reportedly Joins MLS
Topline
Ticket prices for Inter Miami matches skyrocketed in the span of just a few hours Wednesday following reports that soccer legend Lionel Messi will leave Paris Saint-Germain for the MLS, with the cheapest available tickets on the secondary market jumping more than 1,000% for Messi’s first matches with the club.
Key Facts
The cheapest ticket for Inter Miami’s Leagues Cup match against Mexico City’s Cruz Azul on July 21—reported to be Messi’s first match with the club—jumped from $29 to $329 following reports Wednesday morning that the seven-time Balon d’Or winner will join David Beckham’s Inter Miami, according to TickPick.
The get-in price for Miami’s home match against the New York Red Bulls on August 26—reported to be Messi’s first MLS match—jumped from $30 to $401.
Miami’s match against reigning MLS champion Los Angeles FC on September 3 also soared from $81 for the cheapest ticket to $422 in the mediate hours after multiple outlets reported the world’s second-highest-paid athlete is headed to Miami, following speculation he could rejoin his former club Barcelona or take a blockbuster deal to join the Saudi club Al-Hilal.
Big Number
14,522. That’s how many people searched for Inter Miami tickets on StubHub in the hour early Wednesday afternoon after it was reported Messi will join the MLS club. The cheapest available single ticket on StubHub for Miami’s Leagues Cup match against Cruz Azul costs a whopping $373, while a ticket on SeatGeek costs $334.
What We Don’t Know
How much Messi will get paid to join Inter Miami. Forbes estimates Messi earned $130 million last year, split evenly between on-field earnings and multiple lucrative contracts off the field, making him the second-highest-paid athlete in the world, only behind longtime rival Cristiano Ronaldo.
Key Background
Speculation has been building for months around where Messi, a World Cup champion with Argentina and 10-time La Liga champion with Barcelona, would play at the end of the Ligue 1 season, his second with Paris Saint-Germain. Last month, Paris Saint-Germain issued Messi a two-week suspension after he took a promotional trip to Saudi Arabia without notifying the club—Messi later apologized for the suspension, saying he thought he had an off-day and couldn’t cancel his planned trip to Saudi Arabia, where he serves as an official “Tourism Ambassador.” Messi had also been rumored to rejoin Barcelona, where he played his first 17 seasons before joining PSG in 2021, and his father Jorge Messi—acting as his manager—met with team officials this week.
Further Reading
Lionel Messi Reportedly Making Monumental Move To MLS’s Inter Miami (Forbes)
Messi Reportedly Gets Massive Saudi Al-Hilal Offer—Which Could Make Him World’s Top-Paid Athlete (Forbes)
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