Miami isn’t just Lionel Messi’s new home, it’s Argentinian football’s | Argentina

Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi may well miss Argentina’s final Copa América group game on Saturday night, but for the defending champions an outing in Miami will feel like a home game.

The Miami Dolphins’ 65,300-seat Hard Rock Stadium has long been sold out for the tie with Peru, awaiting the arrival of the world champions.

Argentina secured their place in the knockout stages of the tournament following wins over Canada and Chile and, while Messi will reportedly miss out on Saturday’s game with a hamstring injury, it’s a huge event for locals of Argentinian descent. The final, and hopefully Messi, will be back at the same venue on 14 July.

Miami recently became a permanent home for the Asociación del Fútbol Argentino (AFA), which opened a US headquarters in the city’s Wynwood district in December 2023. The association is also building a dedicated national team training facility in the city, founding a new AFA youth academy, and hosting a sports leadership program at Florida International University.

“It was a simple call to decide on Miami as the perfect place to start our brand expansion into the US,” Leandro Petersen, AFA chief marketing officer tells the Guardian. “In the last 20 years, a massive number of Argentinians have migrated to Miami and started businesses and found a lifestyle they had always searched for.

“We feel like home in Miami. And that was exactly the same feeling Messi had when making his family-life decision – the warmness of the city, and the cultural likeness with the Argentinian life.”

The plans for the Miami base began in 2019; prior to the 2021 Copa América and 2022 World Cup wins, and certainly before Messi chose Inter Miami as the destination to likely complete his club career. Events have aligned quite nicely. Beyond this tournament, the World Cup again passes through Miami in 2026.

The synergy continues at club level. Messi and the squad completed their pre-tournament preparations at Inter Miami’s facilities in Fort Lauderdale. The MLS side have already been represented by 14 Argentinian players in just four seasons in the league (the next highest nationality is three) and there are eight players in the current squad of Argentinian descent – including Messi.

For the AFA, a secondary goal exists; to scout talent overseas with dual nationality and eligibility for the national squad, akin to Manchester United forward Alejandro Garnacho, who was born in Spain. That young talent could come to the fore through its planned Miami academy, or through Inter Miami’s.

For Argentinian nationals based in south Florida, the team’s presence is a source of comfort. Many have gathered at the tournament’s official fanzone in Wynwood to enjoy games on a big screen. Others have packed into smaller Argentinian eateries, seeking a slice of home.

“It is everything to have the national team here in Miami. It feels like they are so close, and I feel closer to home” says Mariano Codaro co-owner of Loretta & The Butcher, a cozy spot in trendy Coconut Grove, where fans watched the 2-0 win over Canada on 20 June.

The Buenos Aires native, 46, moved to Miami 22 years ago during a profound economic and social crisis in his home country. He opened the restaurant in 2020.

The national flag hangs from the ceiling, while framed jerseys from Maradona’s Napoli and Argentina sit on the wall beside a giant centerpiece portrait of Messi kissing the World Cup, nestled within a gilded frame.

“The final was crazy, I ended up on the floor over there crying with people on top of me I’ve never seen before or after the World Cup. It was all joy.”

During this evening, the Messi mural was obscured by a projector screen showing him with the ball at his feet. Diners crowded around tables eating skirt steak and grilled octopus, sipping Malbec or a locally-made lager called “GOAT 10” with a can emblazoned in the pink and black colors of Inter Miami.

“This is why I created the restaurant,” he says, motioning with his hands towards the diners. “It was to create this community. We feel everything we do; the food, the wine, soccer.

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“Winning the Copa América here, in Miami, would mean so much to us Argentinians. I have goosebumps just thinking about it. It might be the last tournament with Messi and it would make up for the World Cup here in 1994, which we couldn’t win with Maradona. It’s everything together. That’s why we really want it.”

Argentina’s presence in Miami may signify the commencement of a deeper relationship with the city, but onlookers are also conscious a profound end is in sight.

Federico Saint Germain, an Argentinian reporter based in Miami believes the few remaining opportunities to see Messi, who turned 37 this week, play for La Albiceleste looms large in fans’ minds. It’s why, amid the excitement of the national team’s arrival, the expected absence of its star player on Saturday night will sting.

“We know that these are Leo Messi’s last games, we don’t know if he is going to make it to the next World Cup,” he says. “We are looking at Leo Messi’s last two, maximum three years as a professional footballer. So, everyone wants to see it, everyone wants to see the Argentine team.

“There are many people who want to come to Miami to watch the Argentina national team. Many people on their trips [to the US] included the option of going to see Leo in an Inter Miami match.”

On Friday, fans flocked to the Fanzone Albiceleste AFA: The House of Futbol, a pop-up Argentinian football museum on Biscayne Boulevard. It will remain open until the Copa América final.

Argentina’s three World Cup trophies have been shipped in, and more than 10,000 fans have already purchased tickets for a photo opportunity. Former players will be on hand to greet fans too. The traditional day-before-the-game banderazo celebration was scheduled there on Friday night.

Organizers tell the Guardian, the Argentina squad will pay a visit to the Fanzone Albiceleste next week, prior to the knockout rounds. It’s another huge opportunity to connect with the area. Sports fans in Miami love a winner beyond all else, and Argentina do plenty of that.

“We observe the new generation of kids, and we see ourselves as kids once again every time Argentina national team plays in the US,” adds Peterson, of the AFA’s desire to engage new fans stateside with, and beyond, the last years of Messi.

“The Messi effect exists, but each of the World Champion team is a key player in their own local clubs. Kids get familiarized with success, all kids’ desire is to be a fan of a winning team, and Argentina fills that box perfectly.”