At 37 years old, Lionel Messi is still one of the best soccer players on the planet. But the realities of aging come for us all, even legends such as Messi. Which means that the Inter Miami star will not play all 34 games in the MLS regular season.
With a CONCACAF Champions League match scheduled this coming Thursday, the Argentinian star sat out of Miami’s 4-1 victory over the Houston Dynamo on Sunday. Despite the game being played in Houston, several fans undeniably bought tickets in hopes of seeing Messi play. When Inter Miami announced that the superstar forward would not be traveling with the team, Houston took the bizarre step of apologizing to home fans.
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— Houston Dynamo FC (@HoustonDynamo) March 2, 2025
“The Houston Dynamo are excited to host Inter Miami CF at Shell Energy Stadium on Sunday evening. The recently shared player status report for the match did not include forward Lionel Messi, but it has been reported he did not make the trip to Houston. Unfortunately, we have no control over who plays for our opponent,” the club said in a statement.
“We look forward to hosting everyone tomorrow for what will be an incredible atmosphere and celebration of soccer for the city of Houston. To show our appreciation, fans who attend tomorrow night’s match can claim a complimentary ticket to a future Dynamo match this season. Additional details will be provided early next week.”
So Houston apologized to fans because an opposing player sat out. Imagine that happening in the NFL or NBA. It would be unthinkable.
Beyond that, the Dynamo offered fans free tickets to a future match to make up for Messi not playing. That is absurd.
Mind you, it has been over a decade since the Dynamo were one of the league’s top teams. So maybe ownership should stop apologizing for Messi and start apologizing for not building a competitive team. Because right now, the club comes across as a laughingstock in the more ways than one.
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