Inter Miami preps for Messi arrival with ‘enhanced’ security

Soccer

By Miles Schachner

June 21, 2023 | 5:13pm

Lionel Messi’s impending arrival at Inter Miami will result in several firsts for the MLS club.

As ticket prices and demand for Miami games soar, the team will be upgrading its security outfit for players, bussing them in through a tunnel for home and away games, team owner Jorge Mas told the Miami Herald.

Mas said he was used to the security measures a player like Messi requires after the superstar practiced with the Argentina national team in Miami before the World Cup.

“We had an opportunity to see some of the Messi mania at our doors on an everyday basis during practice,” Mas said. “So, we’re very prepared. We’ve been getting ready for this.”

Messi is expected to play his first game for Inter Miami on July 21, which gives the team a month to prepare for any chaos that could surround the soccer legend.

The Argentine World Cup champion is no stranger to fan disruptions all around him.

In his most recent game, Argentina played Australia in Beijing, China, and 50,000 Chinese fans packed the stadium.

One young Messi fan wearing his jersey jumped onto the field and sprinted around the pitch to give Messi a hug.

Mas said he thinks the Messi signing will change US soccer forever.

“I think there will always be a before and after Messi when we talk about the sport in the United States,” he said. “I have a very, very strong held belief that we can create in North America and the United States, if not the greatest league, one of the top two leagues in the world.”

He also said the team has already completed the process of expanding the DRV PNK Stadium in Miami, where Inter Miami plays its home games, which will seat 22,200 people.

Inter Miami signed a lease for a new stadium, the Miami Freedom Park, that won’t be ready until 2025.