The cauldron that was built for the 1932 Olympic Games still atop the grand entrance arches of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Popularly known as The grand old lady, the coliseum hosted the 1932 and 1984 Olympic Games, and will do so again in 2028. It is the only one of its kind. And, appropriately, he boasts about it. Every corner of the stadium preserves the Olympic essence mixed with all the comforts and new technologies. There, under a strong sun (30 degrees) began the first day in chaotic Los Angeles of the Barcelona expedition with the first training session of the tour.
Meanwhile, 4,400 kilometers from the city of stars, Leo Messi was preparing for his debut with Inter Miami. Just like Busquets. There have been no entries for days. It was an open secret but Leo Messi's first game with Inter Miami, which is played this Friday against the Mexican Cruz Azul in the first round of the Leagues Cup, is breaking all records. The cheapest ticket is around 433 euros. The most expensive exceeds 1,500 euros. Despite the prices, there will not be a space in the Drive Pink Stadium, the home of Messi's club with a capacity for 21,000 fans.
The boom that the Argentine brought with him does not end here. There are practically no tickets for those who want to see him play in the Leagues Cup, a competition in which 47 teams will play for the first time after its creation in 2019. 18 in the Mexican league and 29 in the MLS. On the horizon, the United States, Mexico and Canada are already thinking about the organization and the American brand for the 2026 World Cup. And, of course, the Argentine is part of their commercial strategy.
In Los Angeles, Barcelona will be waiting for the debut of both. “I was excited for Leo to come back. But he could not have been - Ronald Araújo recognized -. But he's in a nice club. He is going to enjoy his family and football, and that is the most important thing, ”added the Uruguayan, referring to the growth of Major League Soccer, which celebrates its 28th season in 2023 with 30 clubs.
But how has it evolved? Is it still a minor league? “In the early years of MLS you almost had to beg the players to come. Now they contact us. Young people come and MLS trains soccer players who go to Europe”, Alfonso Mondelo, sports director of MLS for 29 years, assures La Vanguardia. “Inter Miami, without going any further, is a club that has been around for three years,” adds Albert Rudé, who was part of the first coaching staff in the history of the Florida club, with Diego Alonso as coach. “When we came, we started from scratch. It was a club with no history, no identity, and no established working performance. The facilities were not finished yet and of course there was no game model.
The landing of Messi and Busquets undoubtedly helps the expansion of Inter Miami and an increasingly popular league. “The arrival of Messi is a declaration of intent of who we are. The rest of the clubs reacted well with both arrivals, they know it's good for everyone”, adds Mondelo. And he warns: “Messi is going to have pressure. There is more and more competition. People are looking for entertainment, but also for results. Footballers don't come for a walk. But it is a different pressure, more media than sports”, says Rudé.
Messi and Busquets arrive occupying the places of franchise footballers who travel outside the American financial fair play regulations. “The salary limit is a barrier that we impose and that the teams cannot overcome. For this season the established limit is 5.2 million dollars. The money is distributed among the 18-20 players that make up the first team”, explains Mondelo. However, there are exceptions. In order to attract great players, it was decided to give each team three exemptions to sign players without their arrival influencing their salary limit. This is the case of Messi and Busquets in Miami. Josef Martinez joins them. The other exception to the financial rule is the category called Targeted Allocation Money (TAM).
To achieve this, the tournament authorities authorized the delivery of around 37 million dollars in TAM to be distributed among its 20 teams. This is the case of Jordi Alba, whose signing has become official. “It is usually used when said player cannot occupy the franchise position, but it is important for the team. Everything can change the following year”, explains Mondelo.
In parallel, in 1999 the league began a strategic move to create custom stadiums for its teams that would create the atmosphere and intimacy that soccer deserves. The capacity of the stadiums fluctuates between 18,000 and 30,000 spectators and these have conceptual designs. In 2023, 22 MLS clubs are playing their home games in stadiums built for soccer. In 2025 there will be one more. It is the Miami Freedom Park of Messi's Inter Miami.
