Messi mailbag: Answering your questions on MLS salary cap, media access and the Florida heat

The June 7 announcement from Lionel Messi that he was going to continue his career in Miami caught most people by surprise. The weeks since have been a scramble to finish his contract and prepare for his arrival. 

Every expectation is that Messi will debut on July 21 against Cruz Azul in the newly-created Leagues Cup, but as rumors swirl while we wait for the official announcement and hard confirmation of when we will first see Messi in the black and pink of Inter Miami, we wanted to answer some questions from Twitter about his impending arrival. These questions cover everything from the MLS collective bargaining agreement to ticket prices, Miami roster decisions and MLS media rules. 

Is there any real path for MLS to change the cap/player acquisition model on the fly post-Messi or does it have to wait for the next CBA? —@BanjoLegs

There is definitely a path to do it, I just don’t think it will happen that quickly. The CBA litigates some of the major aspects of player contracts and rights — things like free agency, limits on terms of deals, salary minimums, etc. But the agreement also leaves ample room for MLS to change rules as they see fit in the “management rights” clause. 

In that clause, the MLSPA waives its right to bargain all roster and budget guidelines, including the establishment and termination of different player classifications, roster size, roster composition, number of players within any classification, calendar dates and team salary budgets, among many other things. The MLSPA would be informed of any changes in advance, but the league is able to change those types of rules without being blocked, provided they haven’t specifically been bargained within the CBA. So MLS could create a fourth DP spot or increase the salary budget substantially and drop down to one DP spot without having to bargain those changes. 

That said, it’s unlikely we see substantial changes in the middle of a season. 

Will the emphasis on bringing Messi’s friends with him lead to discussions amongst owners for a shift towards less restrictive roster rules? —@williamhagens

I think it most certainly has to start conversations — or push conversations forward. The idea that MLS can stand pat and not change one thing about how they operate and how they think about building the best on-field product would be disastrous. Messi brings so many different kinds of opportunities to grow, from the audience he can pull in, to the types of players who will be watching what his experiences look like in MLS. 

Anyone who has not read the late Grant Wahl’s The Beckham Experiment would be well-served in doing so. The parallels between that version of MLS needing Beckham to push it forward and this version of MLS waiting for Messi’s arrival to help instruct change are striking. MLS has to be innovative, it has to think about growing and changing, and Messi provides the impetus to do just that. 

I’ve spoken to some sources around the league who are familiar with the workings of the MLS Board of Governors who believe it absolutely will do just that.

Does Messi’s contract contain a dual termination clause? In Argentina it was reported Messi retains the right to cut the agreement early if need be. —@KelvinLoyola

I haven’t heard anything about this on the MLS end, but the details of the deal have been tough to come by, as the league and the parties involved try to quiet down chatter until everything is signed and sealed. I do believe there is an option for the 2026 season, but I would imagine that’s a mutual option. MLS typically does not allow player-held options, but this is not a typical deal.

What is the expected response of teams/league when he doesn’t play in an away match that has exorbitant ticket prices? Any stipulations on requirements to play barring injury? —@daleh1809

Again, I’d say go back to The Beckham Experiment for your answers on this. Beckham didn’t play in many games that first season. He arrived in MLS with an ankle injury and then there were times where he had to be rested, especially as he tried to stay in the England team and was flying back and forth to split club and international duties.

The stories that were written around those games will be written again: families who traveled to see Messi and didn’t get the chance, inflated ticket prices that under-delivered on the promise of seeing Messi, teams that upped ticket prices around a visiting player only for that player not to show up. It’s an inevitability. You can go down the Miami schedule and point to games right now that seem like real question marks for whether Messi goes or doesn’t. 

I think it would be incredibly difficult to insert any sort of clause that requires a player to play, though I imagine there are heavy incentives tied to appearances, goals, etc., as there are for players up and down the roster.

1. Will Inter Miami Keep (Leonardo) Campana and Josef (Martinez)? 2. Will Inter Miami manage to add another impact player via TAM/GAM (as opposed to DP)? —@estebanjq3

I think Miami would prefer to keep both, yes. And they don’t have to move either one, necessarily. Campana can be bought down with allocation money and Martinez’s contract runs out at the end of the season, so I’m not sure what a trade market would look like for him, or if he’d make a move easy, especially because his deal includes a no-trade clause. 

Campana is the interesting one, if only because he would surely bring in a massive haul of allocation money should Miami need the cash to buy down more players. But considering its recent trades and sales, Miami is sitting on a hefty amount of allocation and has the flexibility to add DPs. And it would make sense that they just buy out Rodolfo Pizarro and add players rather than move too many big names out. They likely have some cap space to add a few other non-DP players, but that will require some movement out, as well. 

Remember, if you’re buying down Campana and Gregore, you now have two huge salaries you have to account for with allocation money, plus you have the two new DPs whose numbers you’d also like to buy down, if possible. This is the juggling act of MLS salary caps and GAM. 

I am wondering how you consider the mediatic impact Messi will have on the league. Sure, he is a famous character but he isn’t the media beast that Ibra or Beckham could be back in their days. Are we really gonna see him on every talk show in the U.S.? —@CultureSoccer

Yes, I think this is where there will be a distinct difference between Beckham/Zlatan and Messi. Beckham felt an obligation to be the face of the league. His expansion clause also incentivized him to build up the league. Ibrahimovic enjoyed doing the bigger media opportunities. He’s a star who embraces being a star. 

Messi’s personality is far different. He doesn’t love doing media, so it’ll be a bit of a question mark how much he actually gets out there to do interviews. Surely there will be a few one-on-ones along the way, but I think the expectations for availability should be relatively low. And no, I don’t anticipate seeing Messi on the late-night talk shows, at least not as regularly as Ibrahimovic, though after watching the entertaining videos from Sergio Aguero during the World Cup, maybe they should make that a show.

Will (Messi) be able to make all MLS clubs put in grass pitches? —@TheOrangeGoats

My colleagues and I made some calls about this after hearing some rumors that teams with turf fields were considering laying temporary grass down on top of their turf. We were told there is absolutely nothing to it. It remains to be seen whether Messi will play on turf. He’ll be tested in his first season; Miami has away games in Atlanta and Charlotte this season. A midweek game in Chicago during the NFL season is another “playing surface” question for Messi’s first season. Do they put him on a plane for a midweek game in Chicago considering the history with that field? 

Literally I have been sitting here with a calculator and such like a nerd — how might the typical humidity and heat (85-90 degrees F) of Miami in July change his performance, if at all? For instance on long distance runs it adds a couple min per mile to your time. —@ariellec

No doubt the heat will be different for Messi. But the good news is that he just doesn’t run very much anymore. The Athletic had a whole story about how much he was walking at the World Cup in Qatar! At the World Cup, Argentine players averaged 10.5 kilometers per game. Messi averaged 8.8, less than some of Argentina’s center backs. His teammates averaged 47.9 sprints per game. Messi averaged 35.5. Based on how he’s evolved as a player, I don’t think it will change his game.

Will Messi’s arrival spur you to starting up a new podcast? I miss Allocation Disorder! —@DanielLisi1

To be determined.

Any immediate changes to logistics with security and media protocols? Will Messi have reporters putting cameras & mics in his face in the locker room after he puts on his underwear? —@ThatCodyTho

I’ll never forget being in the locker room after Andrea Pirlo’s first game for NYCFC and seeing the shock on his face when he emerged from the showers and saw the gaggle of press waiting. At least they had us behind a rope. I can’t imagine it will be the same for Miami. 

A number of MLS teams have found ways to modify, work around or straight up ignore the league rules about open locker room access. Some teams say you can request any player you want and they bring them out. Some teams bring players out for press conferences and leave that as the access. Some teams put up screens that prevent you from working the locker room itself and pull players to the other side of that screen and say, ‘Well, technically you’re in the locker room so this is not violating MLS rules.’ 

From an American beat-writing perspective, none of those things is the same as an open locker room. Reporters surround LeBron James after every game. You can get a crack at any top MLB player in the clubhouse. Same with the NFL. But, realistically, soccer is a different beast, and MLS is trying to cope with bringing players into a new culture. 

In many countries, the locker room is sacrosanct. Sometimes you win out and players learn to deal with it. I was able to approach Kaká in visiting locker rooms for basically his entire first season in MLS (when I covered Orlando City full-time). With other players, the access has been more limited. I would assume Messi will be much, much more difficult to get to, and that when we see him speak to media, it will be in a press conference setting.

One of the more interesting angles to this is how away teams will prepare to deal with Messi when he’s in town, and even this media angle is an interesting one. Do they limit press passes? Every reporter here has a story about witnessing a person wearing a press pass asking for a photo with a star player during the American tours from prominent teams or at all-star games. It’s against MLS rules and it’s written on the back of the press pass that your credential will be revoked, but you have to imagine there will be some people who shoot their shot with a little less concern about losing media access.

How does MLS handle closing the door on other marquee players wanting similar treatment to come to the league? —@BlueCityRadio

They say something along the lines of: “You’re not Messi.” Not sure how many players out there could argue that. There will be a time when another player like this comes along, but it’s been 16 years since David Beckham arrived and who knows how long it will be until someone like Kylian Mbappe requires hoops like this. 

Really, if you’re the most optimistic of MLS supporters, you dream of a time when this kind of “marquee” treatment isn’t necessary because MLS grows into a big enough league to not require it. I’m not sure how close that is to reality, however.

How badly does it hurt MLS if Messi struggles to adapt to some of the more unusual and challenging aspects of the league? Travel, turf fields, bad refs, press in the locker room, and especially the wild disparity in player quality across an MLS roster all seem like things he could throw shade on, to the great detriment of the league’s generally improving reputation.  —Mike in Arlington, VA (@MostlyOverThere)

MLS survived Zlatan Ibrahimovic calling it out for multiple issues. It survived David Beckham lamenting the turf fields. It survived Gareth Bale talking about it being okay with losing and Wayne Rooney criticizing the referees. MLS knows what it is. It’s comfortable with what it is. And globally, the perception gap of where MLS actually is and where people think it operates is bad enough that I’m not sure there’s enough of a downside in any sort of public critiques from big players. 

The generally-improving reputation of MLS, in my opinion, is felt more strongly in actual soccer circles — the players, coaches, sporting directors, agents and executives who work in the game — than with the public. We’re at a point now where it’s going to take something more drastic to start influencing public opinion of MLS, both positively and negatively. 

Comments from Messi won’t move the needle. Finding ways to surround Messi with better teammates and competition? Well, maybe that could provide a boost. But even that’s not guaranteed. 

(Photo: Fred Lee/Getty Images)