Inter Miami owner Jorge Mas talks Messi, says ‘work to be done’ on MLS salary-cap rules

July 20, 2023 Admin

Inter Miami managing owner Jorge Mas spoke to media following MLS’s board of governors meetings in Washington, D.C., ahead of the 2023 MLS All-Star Game on Wednesday — the first official gathering of owners since Inter Miami brought Lionel Messi to MLS. Here’s what you need to know:

Asked how the club would measure its success with Messi, Mas said: “We have (already) succeeded.”
Mas also said he is hopeful MLS will continue to loosen roster and salary-cap restrictions.
On reports linking Inter Miami to Luis Suárez, Mas said, “Suárez is a Gremio player. That’s not up to me.”

‘We’ve succeeded’ by ‘the fact Messi is here’

Inter Miami has big expectations for Messi, but no matter what, according to Mas, the club has already been successful just by signing the reigning World Cup champion.

“We have (already) succeeded,” Mas said. “Expectations is something else, but we’ve succeeded. The fact that Lionel Messi is here, that Sergio Busquets is here and others are going to come, that we’ve opened new chapters for the sport in this country, we’ve succeeded.”

Other owners who spoke with media Wednesday were all asked about Messi’s potential impact on the league, and Mas said the excitement carried over to the owners’ meeting.

“I found the energy in the room today infectious,” Mas said. “All of us understand the opportunity ahead of us, the opportunity to continue growing the league. Hopefully this is a catalyst for the hypergrowth that I and all of us aspire to.”

Messi will debut on Friday in Miami’s Leagues Cup match against Cruz Azul.

Mas added that Apple TV executives were in meetings as well, saying that the league and broadcaster discussed plans to continue improving and building both domestically and across the globe.

Miami continues to push for fewer roster restrictions

After Messi announced he would be joining Inter Miami, two high-profile former teammates followed. Miami has already announced the signing of Busquets and Mas has previously said former Barcelona left back Jordi Alba will join too.

Additionally, new manager Tata Martino is seeking to inject more youth into the roster.

However, adding all those pieces is not as straightforward as it may be elsewhere in the world. MLS is fairly unique among global soccer leagues in that it has an extensive system of roster rule constraints. Mas, as he has said publicly over the last few years, is continuing to push to lessen those restrictions.

“Evolution is inevitable and change is likely,” Mas said. “We all want this to be an elite league, we all want it to grow.”

Currently, MLS teams are permitted only three “designated player” slots. Messi and Busquets occupy two of them. If the third DP is classified as a young designated player, teams can sign three players under the age of 22 via the U-22 initiative. With striker Leo Campana as a young DP, Miami is permitted to use all three U-22 slots.

Mas said earlier this week that Paraguayan midfielder Diego Gomez (20) would be joining, that a deal had been reached for Argentine midfielder Facundo Farias (20) and that the club submitted a bid for Argentine center back Toto Aviles (19). All three players would be eligible for the U-22 initiative, pending contract details.

That would leave no DP spots for Alba, who reportedly made more than $20 million last season with Barcelona. Non-DPs can make a maximum of $1.65 million. Miami is still under salary cap sanctions for previously breaking those aforementioned roster rules in a case centered around paying players outside of the salary budget — most notably French World Cup winner Blaise Matuidi, incorrectly reporting him as a non-DP.

“There have been ongoing meetings on how do we continue evolving, how do we continue becoming a league of choice? … There’s different options from incremental change to game-changing moves,” Mas said. “There’s a lot of work to be done by the respective committees in the coming months.”

It’s very unlikely that roster or salary cap rules would change during the season.

“As the league revenues continue to grow, you’re going to see more investment in players,” Mas said. “I think we’re on the right path. A lot of work to do, but I’m confident that the outcome of the work will be positive.”

Luis Suárez? ‘He’s a Gremio player’

Inter Miami continues to be linked with the Uruguay legend Suárez, who is currently at Gremio in Brazil. Mas said earlier this week that “the possibility would be there” for him to come to Miami if he got out of his Gremio contract.

Mas again was asked about the Suárez rumors Wednesday and was careful to point out he’s still under contract.

“Luis Suárez is a Gremio player,” Mas said. “That’s not up to me, he’s under contract at Gremio with a release clause. He’s been an amazing player, but there’s nothing for me to talk about if he’s a Gremio player.”

Mas added Miami has not held talks with Gremio. South American journalist CL Merlo reported Suárez has a $70 million release clause as part of his Gremio contract and the Brazilian club isn’t interested in negotiating.

Suárez, 36, is under contract through 2024 with Gremio. He has four goals and three assists in 12 league matches (1,030 minutes) this season.