Miami’s Owner Eyes Messi Tribute Game With Barca

Inter Miami’s managing owner, Jorge Mas, has said that he was open to his team playing a game at Barcelona to allow Lionel Messi to bid farewell to his fans.

Since Messi left Barca for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) as a free agent in August 2021, there has been talk of a tribute match to honour the Argentina captain.

“I gave Messi my commitment that I will do everything possible in the coming years so that he has the opportunity to say goodbye to his fans in Barcelona,” Mas told Marca on Monday.

“Inter Miami will go [to Barcelona] or we will have some kind of match. Messi’s departure from Barcelona was not to his liking, he could not say goodbye to his club, which welcomed him as a child, and I think the circumstances were not what Lionel wanted.”

Barca president Joan Laporta had previously mentioned that it would be fitting for Messi’s tribute to coincide with the official opening of the revamped Spotify Camp Nou stadium, planned for the 2025-26 campaign.

The LaLiga champions are playing at the Olympic Stadium in Montjuic in the meantime.

The annual Joan Gamper trophy, Barca’s traditional curtain-raiser held in August, has also been reported in the past as a potential tribute event for Messi.

Messi had considered a return to Barca before joining the MLS side after his contract with PSG expired in June.

The World Cup winner has scored 11 goals in 12 matches this season with Inter Miami, which has not lost a game with him on the pitch.

Messi also guided Inter Miami to its first trophy when it lifted the Leagues Cup in August.