After Pele and Beckham, MLS banking on Messi to elevate American soccer to greater heights

#LionelMessi has agreed to sign for #InterMiami, putting an end to his rumored move to former club Barcelona, and also putting down a ￡1 billion offer from Al-Hilal, a Saudi Arabian Pro league club.

New York Cosmos signed Brazilian legend Pele in 1975 and David Beckham joined LA Galaxy in 2007. Both the soccer evangelist had a profound impact on the league. Even Messi is expected to lure football fans to #MajorLeagueSoccer.

“I don't think anybody would doubt that he has over-delivered on every one of those measures,” MLS Commissioner Don Garber said of Beckham. “There's arguably not a soccer fan on this planet that doesn't know the LA Galaxy and Major League Soccer, and David played a significant role in helping us make that happen.”

The league has seen growth in the last few years but their viewership is still not, as high as the other sports in the #UnitedStates.

MLS recorded a viewership of merely 1.3 million across FOX, ESPN, ABC, and FS1 in the prevailing season. Whereas, 10 million people came down to the stadiums to watch the matches. A drastic improvement from the tally of 2.8 million in 1996, when MLS began.

Inter Miami’s DRV PNK Stadium can only hold 18,000 spectators at the moment. The management can move their matches to #HardRock Stadium in Miami Gardens, which has the capacity to host 65,000 spectators.

The club could also increase its ticketing price. All in all, the #DavidBeckham-owned club could face an upheaval in its revenue generation. Messi’s 469 million #Instagram followers would also boost Inter Miami’s social media presence.

However, it would be a major task for MLS as a league to overhaul the #MajorLeagueBaseball and #NationalFootballLeague. MLB drew 64.4 million spectators in the last season, whereas NFL had a tally of 18.8 million.

Messi is in the dying stages of his career. The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner is expected to play in next year’s #CopaAmerica and if everything goes right, then he could also play in the 2026 #WorldCup, which is expected to take place in the US.