Lionel Messi was sighted in Utah ahead of Wednesday’s game between Inter Miami CF and Real Salt Lake, and the visit was enough to send ticket prices surging on secondary markets. Inter Miami posted photos and video of Messi practicing in Herriman, while Real Salt Lake spokesman Trey Fitz-Gerald said all indicators seemed to point to Messi likely starting and playing.
The lineup for the match at America First Field in Sandy will not be released until shortly before kickoff, but the buildup has already turned the game into one of the most watched on Real Salt Lake’s schedule. Around 21,000 people are expected to attend, and the match will be the second time the clubs have met and the first time they have faced off in Utah.
That demand is part of the draw Messi has carried everywhere he has played since leading Argentina to the 2022 World Cup title. Real Salt Lake officials considered moving the match to a larger venue because of his drawing power, but the club chose to keep the game at home, saying it felt an obligation to its 14,000 season ticket holders and wanted to give its team the best chance to win in a favorable atmosphere.
The decision stands in sharp contrast to the scale of the crowd Messi has pulled in elsewhere. Inter Miami’s previous game against the Colorado Rapids drew 75,824 fans at Empower Field at Mile High, the second-highest attendance for any Major League Soccer game ever. The record remains the 82,110 who watched Los Angeles Galaxy face Los Angeles FC on July 4, 2023.
Fitz-Gerald made clear that the intrigue is not just about ticket sales. He called Messi the greatest of all time and likened him to Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali and Tiger Woods, a description that underscores why a midweek league game in Utah has felt bigger than the fixture itself. For fans like Ana Valdemoros, who said she remembers seeing children in the U.S. wearing Messi jerseys and now gets to cheer him on with her 5-year-old, the chance to watch him in person is, she said, priceless.
For Real Salt Lake, the game is also a test of whether it can keep its focus amid the noise. The club is coming off a strong start that it can build on after recent coverage of its season, and the challenge now is whether a packed house and a global star can still leave room for the home side to control the night.
