Lionel Messi and Inter Miami subject of ambitious request for new competition
North America is revelling in the arrival of Lionel Messi to Major League Soccer, and now South America wants a piece of the action.
Inter Miami are preparing for their first final in club history on Saturday, as Messi has transformed the struggling team and now they're favourites to beat Nashville SC and lift the Leagues Cup. MLS was already the fastest-growing football league in the world before Messi joined Miami, but now interest is growing at a rapid rate and subscriptions to Apple TV's MLS Season Pass have surged.
With the United States being part of Concacaf, Miami are currently eligible to compete continental competitions such as the Leagues Cup and the Concacaf Champions Cup, but according to TyC Sports a request has been made for Inter Miami to play in the Copa Libertadores. The prestigious competition has run in South America since 1960, and they want to make a rare expansion to have Miami, and Messi, involved.
Claudio Tapia is the president of the Argentine Primera Division, and has made a formal request to Miami with the approval of CONMEBOL chief Alejandro Dominguez. The competition wants to see Messi involved, and other Concacaf teams are also being considered.
The Libertadores is a huge part of the football culture in South America, and success can give clubs a massive boost due to the financial rewards on offer. Champions receive £14.1million ($18m) and there are guarantees of over £780,000 ($1m) for teams that advance from the group stages.
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Brazilian giants Flamengo are the current champions, with Argentinian side Independiente the most successful with seven titles since the competition was formed 63 years ago. But chiefs of the Libertadores are open to change, and feel that opening it up to Concacaf teams could see it grow globally.
Messi would be the perfect pioneer for the merger, although Miami are yet to respond to the offer as they focus their attention on the Leagues Cup final. Messi is yet to play in MLS as his arrival lined up with the start of the new tournament, one that was founded back in 2019.
Flamengo won the 2022 Copa Libertadores with a 1-0 win over Athletico ParanaenseMiami have won all six games on their route to the final, with Messi inspiring more wins in the past month than they've managed in 22 regular season games in MLS. Messi has scored nine goals in six games for his new team, and is already the leading scorer in Leagues Cup history.
The Libertadores will be very familiar to Messi, growing up in Argentina and beginning his career at Newell's Old Boys. Although, it's not known how it will be received in the top South American leagues.
Teams currently qualify for the competition based on their final league position in their respective countries, with the more successful nations receiving more entries. Unless there is a total expansion then Miami's ticket into the competition could see another team miss out.
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