Lionel Messi is evidently going back to China, after Inter Miami took advantage of not making the Major League Soccer playoffs by signing a deal to play two exhibitions there next month. The team said it would play a pair of friendlies against Chinese Super League teams, first in Qingdao, China against Qingdao Hainiu on Nov.
Argentina’s Lionel Messi walks the field during a qualifying soccer match for the FIFA World Cup 2026 against Paraguay at the Monumental stadium in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023. Argentina’s Lionel Messi prepares to take a corner kick during a qualifying soccer match for the FIFA World Cup 2026 against Paraguay at the Monumental stadium in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023.
Inter Miami’s announcement of the deal did not specifically mention Messi or any other player, though it would be surprising if Chinese officials agreed to the games without some sort of guarantee that the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner and the team’s other best-known standouts — Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba among them — would be making the trip if physically able.
Messi also won Olympic gold in China, helping Argentina win the title at the Beijing Games in 2008. He and Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham have enormous followings in Asia, along with several endorsement deals in the region. That suggests this trip could be another major financial win for Inter Miami. MLS officials said Messi’s jersey has been the league’s top seller in 2023 — even though it wasn’t on sale until July — and the team has told its season ticket holders that it plans to increase prices dramatically for the 2024 season.
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