Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami move causes ticket price surge throughout MLS

When Lionel Messi walks into an MLS stadium for the first time, he will be greeted by a packed stadium of adoring fans, many of whom have likely paid incredible amounts to see the magician from Rosario, Argentina. When Lionel Messi walks into an MLS stadium for the second time, he will be greeted with the same reception. And the third time, and the fourth time, and every other time. Messi, without having put pen to paper on a contract with Inter Miami, is already the biggest draw the league has seen since David Beckham arrived in 2007.

That much was evident in ticket offices across MLS on Wednesday. Teams across MLS that are set to host Miami this season saw massive movement on ticket sales even before Messi made his decision official late in the afternoon. That was true even for games in which Messi is unlikely to play.

After departing Paris Saint-Germain as a free agent, Messi is set to become a Miami player on July 5, when the league’s secondary transfer window opens. Three days later, Inter Miami will travel to the capital to face D.C. United at Audi Field. Without confirmation on whether Messi will even feature, the demand for tickets has seen prices go through the roof. For D.C.’s next league match at home against Real Salt Lake, the cheapest tickets available through Ticketmaster (the club’s official ticketing partner) are priced at $29. For Miami’s trip in July, the cheapest ticket on sale at time of writing is priced at $186 without fees – with that number increasing by the minute. Per a source with internal knowledge of the sale numbers but not authorized to speak publicly, D.C. have sold more than 3,000 tickets since news broke of Messi’s potential arrival, likely 4,500 by the end of the day, and fans may not even have the opportunity to see him in action. Those around the league do not think Messi will debut in MLS until later in July, at the earliest.

The uptick in sales was consistent across MLS, and it’s been a huge boon for Miami, which ranked last in attendance in MLS last season with an average of 12,637 fans per game.

League sources briefed on early planning for Messi’s arrival have pointed to a July 21 fixture against Mexican side Cruz Azul as Messi’s debut in front of a home crowd. The game is one of the first games in the new Leagues Cup, a competition set up between MLS and the Mexican league, Liga MX. Tickets for the Cruz Azul game are now sold out, according to Ticketmaster. 

Brokers and season ticket holders looking to resell tickets bought for face value are set to gain immensely from Messi’s arrival in MLS. Without any alternative, fans will be forced to shop in the expensive second-hand market to secure tickets to see Miami in person. The team owners who have signed ticketing contracts that get a revenue share of secondary sales will also benefit. For context, a single ticket for Game 3 of the NBA Finals in Miami is cheaper at the time of writing ($333) than witnessing Messi’s potential debut ($373), with tickets only currently available on StubHub’s resale market. 

The story is the same for Atlanta United, scheduled to host Messi and Miami in mid-September. For this fixture, they are expected to open their stadium to maximum capacity once the signing is officially confirmed by the league. Typically, they average around 50,000 spectators; when Messi comes, they expect to host a sell-out crowd, which could exceed 70,000. While the demand for tickets will be eased in opening the upper bowl of their Mercedes Benz Stadium, tickets are currently on sale at a minimum of $350 (excluding fees), which may still increase.

The Chicago Fire are expecting a boost when they host Miami, too. By October 4, when Messi visits Soldier Field, he will be in the swing of a rockstar-like tour across the United States. The Fire had sold just less than 10,000 tickets for the game in the months since the schedule was announced. By Wednesday afternoon, they had sold 7,000 more, according to a team spokesperson. The expectation is that they could end up matching that 10,000 number by the end of the day — and that is with prices at $200 and reaching up to $10,000 in Soldier Field’s United club. 

Charlotte FC sold more than 10,000 tickets by Wednesday afternoon, according to a spokesperson, and opened the upper bowl to Bank of America Stadium, which can accommodate more than 74,000 fans. Fans of LAFC, one of two Western Conference teams playing host to Messi, will not secure a seat at BMO Stadium for anything less than $350, almost ten times the price for the visit of Colorado Rapids in August.

“It’s a great opportunity for our fans to possibly see the greatest soccer player of all time,” said Zach Lahey, spokesperson for the New York Red Bulls, who will host Miami on August 26 after previously hosting friendlies involving the Argentina national team and FC Barcelona. “We had him here last fall with Argentina, and we are expecting similar demand with what we had with FC Barcelona.”

The short-term furor will transcend generations and football-specific interest. Watching Messi in Miami is as fresh and new as it gets for a league without a global superstar capable of all-star production since Zlatan Ibrahimovic departed in 2019. That Messi is coming off of a World Cup win less than a year ago that drew more than 25 million viewers across English- and Spanish-language coverage has only added to that celebrity. It was a part of the equation in a deal to bring him to the U.S., and why corporate partners like Apple and Adidas have been involved in negotiations. 

Three years before the United States hosts the World Cup, Messi’s impact on the sport has the potential to be a lasting one. That change must occur in more than just ticket booths, but for now his popularity and the immediate impact on revenue shines a light on how one player can bring a bright, bright spotlight. 

(Photo: Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)