After watching the itinerary of Miami International, it is difficult for anyone not to be worried about the physical condition of elderly players such as Messi and Suarez. Although a series of races were just a warm-up, the fatigue of a long journey is undeniable.
David Beckham and Jorge Maas, owners of Inter Miami, are trying to make huge profits from the most expensive lineup in Major League Soccer history. Perhaps there is a strong sense of urgency in them, as neither investor knows what these senior stars will be like in the next year or two.
Since its trip to El Salvador, a small country in China and the United States, on January 19, Miami International has been traveling at a non-stop pace. They lost 1-0 to Dallas in Texas and then flew to Saudi Arabia to lose 4-3 to Riyadh Crescent in Riyadh. After that, the team will play Riyadh Victory on February 1, Hong Kong on February 4, Vissel Kobe in Tokyo on February 7, Messi's hometown Newell old buddy in Florida on February 16, and then start their first major league game at home to Salt Lake City on February 22.
Although David Beckham and Jorge Mas have invested in Miami International for some time, they have never done such a world tour, totaling 3A journey of 70,000 kilometers. Now, with a gold-sucking artifact like Messi, Inter Miami is hoping to earn a record income. Their goal is to reach $200 million in revenue this year, a figure that will make Miami International the most successful club on the American continent.
However, such a grand business plan meant that the old players in the squad had to accept frequent commercial competitions and spend a lot of time on the road. This may be completely different from what they imagined before joining the company to spend more time with their families. In addition to the 36-year-old Messi, Inter Miami's main squad also includes 34-year-old Spaniard Alba, 35-year-old Sergio Busquets and 37-year-old Uruguayan striker Suarez, who has just joined.
No one knows what kind of damage this kind of pre-season tour, whose main purpose is to attract money, will be caused to the team's competition. In the last period of last season, the team did not qualify for the playoffs due to Messi's injury. The task now falls to head coach Martino, who must balance his marketing obligations with the full four official competitions. Martino wasn't too worried, saying that the two things don't cancel each other out and that a balance can be found.
Beckham and Maas are full of ambition and their goal is to make Inter Miami quickly grow into a global football brand, just like Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Manchester City and Manchester United. Javier Asensi, Managing Director from Spain, said in an interview with Sports Business Newsletter: "We weren't a globally recognized brand before, now we are. ”
Messi's arrival was so impactful that tickets to see Inter Miami doubled. Even so, it still didn't dampen fans' enthusiasm for buying season tickets, with more than 90% of season ticket holders directly choosing to renew their subscriptions for the season. Plus the new buyers, despite ***, there is no place left. Head coach Martino said that in the current pre-season, the stars have played in a row, because the pre-season is arranged with contractual obligations. But going into the season, "if there are more games, we will split the playing time between the players. ”
In addition to MLS football, Inter Miami also competes in the CONCACAF Champions League, the American Open Cup, and the Mexicanx League Cup, which are organized by the Major League Soccer and the Mexican League. A Yahoo Sports report calculates Inter Miami's 2024 schedule: if Inter Miami plays all the way to the end, the team will play 66 matches and fly more than 110,000 kilometers in the air between the friendly against El Salvador on January 19 and the end of the season (expected on December 7)!
With the season just getting underway, Inter Miami doesn't have any major player fatigue or injuries to worry executives. All eyes are on the match on February 1 against Rowe's Riyadh Victory. The poster was labelled "The Last Dance", meaning that this could be the last matchup between Ronaldo and Messi. This matchup will be the largest revenue component of this round-the-world tour, which could bring in $10 million.
Riyadh Victory also tried to use Ronaldo's fame to make money, but the two friendly matches in China were cancelled, nominally because Ronaldo was injured and could not recover, and Ronaldo also made a public apology. So, will Ronaldo miss the reunion with Messi? Whether it's the Saudis or the top and bottom of Inter Miami, most people believe that Ronaldo will play. It's a party not to be missed, and it's a big business.
*: Sports.com.