21 hours ago
5
Lizzy BecheranoJul 25, 2025, 05:01 PM ET
Inter Miami co-owner Jorge Mas said Lionel Messi is "extremely upset" aft being issued a one-game suspension by Major League Soccer for not featuring successful Wednesday's All-Star Game, a punishment that the squad authoritative labeled "draconian."
"Lionel Messi is precise upset, similar we each are successful the club, with the information that they won't beryllium capable to play time night. But I deliberation what we person to bash arsenic a nine is to get unneurotic arsenic one, person an cognition that is america against the world," said Mas astatine a quality league connected Friday.
Both Messi and Jordi Alba, who besides missed Wednesday's event, volition beryllium unavailable for the team's crippled against MLS Eastern Conference leaders FC Cincinnati connected Saturday arsenic MLS rules authorities that immoderate subordinate who does not enactment successful the All-Star Game without anterior support from the league is ineligible to vie successful their club's adjacent match.
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"I deliberation that the punishment for the regularisation is frankly draconian," said Mas.
"Obviously it was not a affirmative absorption [from Messi and Alba]. They privation to compete, they privation to play games. That's what they're present for, to play and win. They recognize the magnitude of tomorrow's night's game.
"So no, their absorption was precisely arsenic expected of 2 competitory players who don't recognize the decision, who don't recognize wherefore not attending an accumulation lucifer leads straight to a suspension."
Mas confirmed it was Inter Miami, not the players, that made the determination to miss the event, saying the nine prioritized the wellness and wellness of some players implicit the league's lawsuit owed to the existent docket congestion.
Inter Miami communicated with the league connected Monday and Tuesday of this week that Messi and Alba would not be the All-Star Game aft playing 9 matches successful the past 36 days.
Since the commencement of the 2025 campaign, Inter Miami has participated successful the Concacaf Champions League, MLS regular season, FIFA Club World Cup and volition present hole to diagnostic successful the upcoming variation of Leagues Cup.
"I wanted to explicit contiguous our afloat enactment for Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba, arsenic the determination for them to beryllium retired this week was made by the club. I deliberation that is an important point. I privation to guarantee everyone that Lionel and Jordi person acted successful a mode commeasured with what the nine would want," said Mas.
If enactment successful a akin scheduling concern adjacent year, Mas ensured a akin determination would beryllium taken.
"It's untenable. For example, if faced with this concern adjacent year, wherever we person an distant crippled connected Saturday, the All-Star crippled is connected a Tuesday oregon Wednesday, and we person a crippled connected Saturday, an important game, we're going to beryllium successful the aforesaid boat, successful the aforesaid situation," said Mas.
MLS commissioner Don Garber said earlier that the league volition "take a hard look astatine the argumentation moving forward."
"I'm committed to moving with our players to find however the regularisation should evolve," helium added.
Messi's declaration with Inter Miami expires pursuing the extremity of the 2025 campaign, arsenic negotiations for a caller woody stay ongoing.
When asked if the authorisation would interaction Messi's cognition of the league and his tendency to motion a declaration hold with Inter Miami, Mas replied: "Messi is precise upset, highly upset today, arsenic expected.
"I'm hopeful it doesn't person an interaction agelong term. Will it person an interaction initially successful the player's cognition of however the league rules work, et cetera? Absolutely, nary doubt."
