When will Lionel Messi play next? Inter Miami announce pre-season schedule set to kick off next week
MLS giants Inter Miami have announced their pre-season schedule ahead of the 2025 campaign proper, as the Herons return to action on January 18. They take on Club America at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas before heading to South America for a troika of friendlies.
It begins with a visit to Peru, where Miami take on Club Universitario de Deportes at the Estadio Monumental in Lima on January 29. Next on their trip is Panama, where Javier Mascherano's side face Sporting San Miguelito in Panama City, four days later.
Their last foreign game of the pre-season is scheduled for Honduras on February 8, when the Florida outfit play a match against Club Deportivo Olimpia. It's set to take place at the Estadio Olimpico Metropolitano in San Pedro Sula.
Upon returning to the US, Miami play out their final pre-season clash against Orlando City on February 14 at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida.
The five-match tour across four weeks this year presents a lighter schedule than last year, when Inter Miami played six games in five locations - El Salvador, Dallas, Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong, and Japan - in a span of just three weeks.
Lionel Messi is expected to be a part of their tour, as the Argentine gears up for another challenging year ahead with the MLS outfit. That's because in 2025, Miami are also set to participate in the first edition of the FIFA Club World Cup in June, with the Champions Cup and League Cup tournaments also in the pipeline.
The 37-year-old will be vital in helping them get far in each of these cups, as well as launch a sustained title challenge in the league. He struck 23 goals from 25 games in all competitions last year, his first full year with the side, and will be aiming to improve on them in 2025.
Could Lionel Messi potentially return to Europe?
Rumors linking the former Barcelona star Lionel Messi with a return to Europe have been doing the rounds lately. That's because Inter Miami are preparing to offer him a new contract, and that includes a provision to play for a European side on loan (via Barca Blaugranes).
With the FIFA World Cup coming up in June 2026, it allows him to remain competitive ahead of the US-Canada-Mexico showpiece, where he intends to lead defending champions Argentina.
Under the new terms, Messi can join a club from Europe on loan after the 2025 season ends in December. Reports of a reunion with Barcelona inevitably came up.
Such a deal isn't new. In the past, there have been big names who returned to Europe on loan while plying their trade in the MLS. Thierry Henry sealed loan move back to Arsenal in January 2012 for a month. David Beckham and Zlatan Ibrahimovic both signed for AC Milan on loan during their time with the LA Galaxy.
