FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami will begin a two-game postseason tour of China, the team announced Sunday.
Just over two weeks after the end of their 2023 MLS campaign, Inter Miami will travel to take on Chinese Super League sides Qingdao Hainyu and Chengdu Rongxin on November 5 and 8 respectively.
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“We are very excited to continue expanding the global reach of our club, and have our team playing in front of amazing fans all over the world,” said Chief Business Officer Xavier Asensi.
“This is a special opportunity to share passion while reaching new audiences and exposing ourselves in new places, and we are looking forward to embarking on this adventure.”
Miami — which was eliminated from playoff contention after losing to FC Cincinnati in its last outing — has two games remaining against Charlotte FC in the MLS regular season, with a home game on Wednesday followed by a trip to North Carolina on Saturday. .
Messi has played in just two of the team’s last seven MLS matches due to a hamstring injury, but managed 35 minutes off the bench in the loss to Cincinnati and played 37 minutes for Argentina in their 1-0 FIFA World Cup qualifying win over Paraguay. Friday.
If healthy, the Argentine legend – who scored 11 goals in his first season with Miami – will certainly be the main attraction for fans attending matches in this two-game tour of China, whose national team has made just one World Cup appearance. In 2002.
The Chinese Super League has attracted a number of high-profile Brazilian signings in recent years, including… Oscar, the structure, Alex Teixeira And Paulinho – although many of those players have now moved on.
“This will be a great opportunity to continue to build on our 2023 campaign, in which we claimed our first ever title,” said Chris Henderson, sporting director and head of football.
He added: “We will take this opportunity to begin our preparations for 2024, as we look to build on last season and achieve further success moving forward.”
Miami, which won the League Cup in August and qualified for the 2024 CONCACAF Champions Cup, will play the first match of the round at the new 50,000-capacity Qingdao Hainyu Stadium which opened in April this year.
Coached by Spaniard Antonio Carreño, the team returns to the Premier League in 2023 after securing successive promotions and sits in 13th place out of 16 teams with three matches remaining.
Inter Miami’s second rival, Chengdu Rongqing, is a five-year-old club that achieved promotion in three of its first four seasons, reaching the Chinese Super League in 2022, where it finished fifth. They sit in sixth place in the table.
