From three fans outside hotel to 500! What it is like to work with Lionel Messi in MLS at Inter Miami – as told by USMNT star and former Herons defender DeAndre Yedlin

A surge in interest was sparked when eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi completed a move to the United States in 2023. Manchester United legend David Beckham, who is now a co-owner in Florida, helped to put that deal in place.

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Messi has become the star attraction in MLS, with ticket prices soaring wherever he goes, and he has been delivering on the field when fit – with MVP talk generated in 2024 prior to heading off on Copa America duty. Playing alongside the all-time great can take some getting used to for his team-mates.

Yedlin admits as much, despite his experiences in Europe with the likes of Newcastle and Galatasaray, with the USMNT defender telling FC Cincinnati's official website on the back of bidding farewell to Miami in March: “I can’t say that I had ever been a part of anything like that. I think I had been a part of things closer to that than a lot of the guys there had, especially a lot of the guys that haven’t left MLS and been in Europe. So I think that side of it, it was a little bit eye-opening for some guys at first. Where, you’re going from travelling and into a hotel where there’s maybe three people outside waiting to now 500 people. Even at away games, three-quarters of the crowd is wearing pink jerseys. It’s good, especially for those players and even for myself, to kind of see what comes with that level of attention.”

Messi has helped Argentina to another Copa America final, meaning that he is unlikely to be back in Florida for a meeting with Toronto next Wednesday. He should, however, be clear to figure in a home date with Chicago on July 20.