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Although there have been many great soccer players in the history of soccer, one current soccer player has taken the world by storm over the past decade:  Lionel Messi (mostly known by fans as simply Messi).  Messi has recently joined Major League Soccer (MLS), America’s largest soccer league. Messi joined one of the worst performing MLS teams, Inter Miami, which is owned by David Beckham, another well-known soccer star. Before playing in the MLS Messi played with Paris Saint-Germain, a French soccer team and the Argentinian national team where he won the World Cup. Lionel Messi has flourished at each soccer club and was looking for another way to grow, so now he has joined the MLS at Inter Miami FC.

Messi has made 11 appearances in games in a short amount of time with the MLS; he has scored eleven goals and completed five assists. While Messi is averaging a goal per game, he’s also getting many assists in every game he plays. These stats are well above the average MLS player. Lionel Messi has had impressive stats as a newcomer of the league and has also ended a winning streak for the best team in the league, FC Cincinnati, a team Inter Miami lost to in the past. The two teams went face-to-face once again in the U.S Open Semi-Finals. Inter Miami won the match in penalty kicks five to four. This caused many to wonder if Messi was the key to taking his new and “improved” team to wins. Although Messi is a great player impacting the results of the games, the wins are not just due to how many goals but also due to the opportunities he creates for others.

The way Messi creates opportunities for his teammates is reflected by one of his most amazing statistics: before Messi joined Inter Miami, they took 22 games to score 22 goals, but once Messi joined, the time was reduced to nine where Messi had scored nine goals. Although Messi is a great goal scorer, he is creating chances for others to score more goals and win more games. Messi is clearly very good at distributing the ball in order to reach his teammates, otherwise he would not be able to cause so many goals to be scored by his team. 

Messi is not only helping out on the field, but he is also helping off the field by positively influencing the financial market tied to the MLS. For example, tickets that were previously seventy five dollars to attend a game between two MLS teams are now $1,000 per seat. Plus,t many celebrities have attended Messi’s games, including LeBron James, Selena Gomez, and even Prince Harry. Games where Messi is playing can sell for higher prices than games without Messi.

 Inter Miami’s previous worth was around 20 million, but the team is estimated to be a couple hundred million dollars, becoming the largest MLS team in history. It is incredible that the addition of a single player could cause such a large ripple effect across this sport and nation.

References 

Borg, Simon. “How many goals has Lionel Messi scored for Inter Miami this season? Stats, highlights in MLS in 2023.” The Sporting News, The Sporting News, 9-14-2023, www.sportingnews.com/us/soccer/news/how-many-goals-lionel-messi-scored-inter-miami-stats-mls-2023/cr9gtz3zxvcmydy0pharj8xt.

“Lionel Messi.” Inter miami FC, Inter miami FC, N.D. www.foxsports.com/stories/soccer/lionel-messi-stats-tracker-every-goal-assist-and-trophy-for-inter-miami