Messi propels Inter Miami past Vancouver for 1st MLS Cup title

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Lionel Messi's legacy was long secured when he came to Inter Miami and joined Major League Soccer. He'd won a World Cup, won dozens of trophies, and was generally considered the greatest player in the sport's history.

He didn't need an MLS Cup.

But he wanted one — and got it.

Messi and Inter Miami have completed their ascent, beating the Vancouver Whitecaps 3-1 on Saturday in the MLS Cup final for the franchise's first championship. It came 2 1/2 years after the legend arrived in South Florida, a move that stunned plenty of onlookers at the time.

He set up the title-clinching goal with a 72nd-minute assist to Rodrigo De Paul, a play where Messi stole the ball and threaded a pass through a tiny gap in a wall of Vancouver defenders. De Paul got it in stride, pushed it into the far corner of the net — and Messi went airborne to hop into his arms a few seconds later, all smiles.

And as the final minutes ticked away, Inter Miami's pink-clad fans — most wearing Messi's No. 10 on their backs — stood and stomped and cheered. South Florida has seen NFL and NBA and Major League Baseball and NHL titles in the past.

It's a soccer town now, too.

Messi made that happen. Tadeo Allende scored in the sixth minute of stoppage time — off another Messi assist, of course — to make it 3-1.

Messi finished the MLS playoffs with a record-breaking 15 goal contributions.

Inter Miami became the 16th franchise in the league's 30-year history to win an MLS title. And this extends a run of parity for MLS, which has seen five different franchises win championships in the last five years and eight franchises claim a title in the last nine seasons — only Columbus has won twice in that span.

It was also the culmination of a 12-year odyssey for David Beckham, part of Inter Miami's ownership group.

He retired as a player in 2013 and his MLS contract said he could start a franchise at a discounted rate when his career ended. Beckham chose Miami and it took him years to finally make it happen; it wasn't until January 2018 when the franchise was formally born, after he partnered with Miami businessmen Jorge Mas and Jose Mas, and even then the team didn't have a stadium plan.

The team started play in 2020, and Messi arrived halfway through the 2023 season. Inter Miami was in last place in MLS at the time.

And then Messi arrived. The last-place team then now runs the league.

"It's been an incredible journey," Beckham said.

The trophy is Messi's 47th for club and country, extending his global men's soccer record. He's now won at least 21 titles in one-match final situations, many of them with the core of this team — Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba, Luis Suarez and Javier Mascherano, his longtime Barcelona teammates.

Busquets and Alba are retiring and got to go out as champions. Suarez's future is uncertain. Mascherano is the coach now, one who changed Inter Miami's lineup and tactics halfway through the season with this moment in mind.

And the 38-year-old Messi, the 2024 MLS MVP who seems like a lock to win the award again this season, still is like none other in the biggest moments with a contract that could have him playing with Miami into his early 40s.

"He's not just here to enjoy living in Miami," Beckham said. "His wife and the kids love Miami, but he's come here to win, and that's really what Leo is all about. He wants to win. He's got that dedication, the loyalty that he shows to his teammates, to the city, to the club. Leo is a winner. It's simple as that."

Inter Miami went up 1-0 on an own goal in the eighth minute, before Vancouver tied it in the 60th on a goal by Ali Ahmed. Another Vancouver shot hit both posts about two minutes later but stayed out, and Inter Miami got the lead for good when Messi found De Paul.

And when it was over, Messi went over to the Inter Miami supporters section and threw both his hands in the air. It was a moment 2 1/2 years in the making.

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