Sources: Messi on hiatus for next 2 Miami games
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- Lionel Messi and Rodrigo De Paul will miss Inter Miami's matches against Chicago Fire FC on Wednesday and CF Montréal on Saturday after playing in Argentina's 1-0 World Cup final extra-time loss to Spain, sources told ESPN Monday.
- Inter Miami notified MLS that both players will also skip the July 29 MLS All-Star Game against the Liga MX All-Stars because the date falls inside the recommended 21-day rest window; both had been selected to the squad.
- FIFA and FIFPRO reached consensus in 2025 that players should have "at least 21 days of rest" at season's end, though it remains unclear whether Messi and De Paul will be out for the full 21 days.
- Messi played all 120 minutes of the final and started seven of Argentina's eight World Cup games, finishing with eight goals and four assists to place second in the Golden Boot race behind Kylian Mbappé's 10 goals.
- Messi became the first player to start three World Cup finals — 2014 vs. Germany, 2022 vs. France, and the 2025 loss to Spain — and reached 125 career international goals this summer.
- Messi wrote on social media Monday that "the pain is immense" but praised Argentina for "managing to unite as a country," and he congratulated Spain on the championship.
Why it matters: The MLS All-Star Game's clash with the 21-day rest window turns a player-welfare consensus into a real league-level scheduling conflict, and Inter Miami's next two matches will play without their top attraction. For Messi, the first player ever to start three World Cup finals, the enforced rest aligns with his recovery after starting seven of Argentina's eight tournament games.
