Confirmed: Messi, Inter Miami to play two friendly matches in China in early November
Inter Miami announced just after midnight that it will embark on a tour of China in early November for the club’s first-ever international tour.
The Miami Herald and a few media outlets in Argentina and China had reported earlier in the week that the tour was in the works as the team seeks to expand its reach in Asia. Lionel Messi and David Beckham have huge followings and business partners in that region of the world.
The team will play two Chinese Super League teams in friendly matches, first facing Qingdao Hainiu F.C. in Qingdao, China on Nov. 5 at the Qingdao Youth Football Stadium, before playing against Chengdu Rongcheng in Chengdu, China on Nov. 8 at the Phoenix Hill Sports Park.
Broadcast details and ticket information will be available in the coming weeks.
“We’re very excited to continue to expand our Club’s global reach, bringing our team to play in front of incredible fans across the globe,” said Inter Miami chief business officer Xavi Asensi. “ This is a special opportunity to share the passion as we reach new audiences and put ourselves on display in new places, and we’re looking forward to beginning this adventure.”
Sporting director Chris Henderson added: “This will be a great opportunity to continue building on our 2023 campaign, in which we achieved our first-ever trophy. We will take this as an opportunity to begin our preparations for 2024, as we look to build on last season and find more success moving forward.”
The match against Qingdao Hainiu F.C. will be at its new 50,000-capacity Qingdao Youth Football Stadium that opened in April of this year. The club, founded in 1990, is led by Spanish coach Antonio Carreño.
The Chengdu Rongcheng game is at the Phoenix Hill Sports Park, which seats over 60,000 spectators.
When Beckham played for the Los Angeles Galaxy, the team did an Asian-Pacific Tour that included matches in Indonesia, Philippines and Australia. Messi and the Argentine national team played a friendly against Australia in Beijing in June.
The MLS season ends next week for Inter Miami, which will be play its two final games against Charlotte FC, home on Wednesday and away on Saturday, after failing to qualify for the playoffs.
This story was originally published October 15, 2023 at 1:07 AM.