Tickets to see Lionel Messi’s potential debut for Inter Miami have been listed online for $20,000 about N15million as prices continue to soar as MLS club chiefs try to add 3,000 seats to their stadium.
The cheapest resale price for Miami’s League Cup game against Cruz Azul on July 21, which is expected to be Messi’s debut, has soared 1,034%.
At the start of the week, tickets on StubHub ranged from $810 to $20,701.
That being said, single game tickets for the Herons’ home league games after July 1 are yet to go on sale – a strategy club officials adopted before the player himself went on sale. announces its move to South Florida.
Inter Miami will also add 3,000 seats to their DRV PNK stadium by August to meet demand to see Messi in action, increasing capacity to 22,000.
DRV PNK Stadium to increasee capacity to 22,000
Charlotte FC sold 10,000 tickets for their home game against Miami in less than three hours after Messi revealed his move to the United States. Atlanta United, which ranks first in average attendance (46,097) in the league, offers full upper-tier seating for its 71,000-capacity Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Messi’s signing attracted more than 150,000 searches for Inter Miami in June, an all-time high in the club’s history. Searches for “MLS” hit their highest level in five years, climbing 322% from the past 30 days at the time of the signing announcement.
Messi’s move to Paris Saint-Germain in 2021 had been met with similar fandom which provided a significant financial boost for the Ligue 1 champions. PSG made a $750m profit on shirt sales and increased his earnings with Messi on his books, according to Marca.
Inter Miami are yet to release confirmation of Messi’s arrival as the 35-year-old is still technically under contract with PSG until July 1, although it’s still highly anticipated that he will join.
World champions Argentina will play a friendly match against Australia on June 15 at the newly renovated 68,000-seat Workers’ Stadium in Beijing.