Can Lionel Messi do it on a freezing Tuesday night in Kansas?! Inter Miami superstar 'wants to SKIP Sporting KC trip' amid threat of bitterly cold -24C temperatures

The Herons, who are used to the tropical climate of South Florida, are due in Kansas City on Tuesday for their first competitive outing of 2025. Weather reports are suggesting that the contest will take place in bitterly cold conditions.

Forecasts are claiming that Inter Miami will take to the field in -15C, with the wind chill factor making it feel like -24C. Talks are said to have taken place regarding a possible postponement, or moving the fixture to warmer climes.

According to journalist Franco Panizo, Messi is reluctant to figure in a game that could set unwanted records. Panizo has posted on social media: “Sources have told me that Lionel Messi does not want to play in the blistering cold on Tuesday vs Sporting Kansas City. Whether he does or not is still to be determined, but there is a chance Messi does not play in the CONCACAF Champions Cup opener.”

Messi’s close friend Luis Suarez, who is now working alongside the Argentine again in Miami, has previously said of the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner's reluctance to play in the cold: “He told me that he suffers a lot playing in the cold and snow. You have to get used to the cold for sure.”

The coldest match in MLS history saw the Colorado Rapids and Portland Timbers go head-to-head in 2019 as the mercury dipped to -7C. The return date of Inter Miami’s clash with Sporting KC will take place at Chase Stadium on February 25, once the 2025 MLS campaign has got underway.