Messi, Inter Miami can advance in Club World Cup with win, tie, even a loss. Here’s how

Lionel Messi fans, most wearing replicas of his pink No. 10 shirt, left Mercedes-Benz Stadium chanting his name after witnessing history. The Argentine legend’s brilliant bending free kick led Inter Miami to a 2-1 victory over Porto that puts the team in excellent position to advance to the Club World Cup knockout stage.

Inter Miami’s improbable win on Thursday was the first ever by a Concacaf team against a European team in an official FIFA competition. With the victory, Inter Miami moved into second place in the Group A standings behind Palmeiras heading into a Monday showdown against the Brazilian power in the final group game at Hard Rock Stadium.

Inter Miami, the group underdog heading into the tournament, has proven it belongs and is now on the cusp of reaching the Round of 16.

The top two teams in each group advance. Miami and Palmeiras are tied with four points apiece through two games. Miami will stay alive with a win or tie and can even advance with a loss. If Inter Miami loses on Monday (9 p.m., TBS, DAZN.com), it still moves on if Al Ahly fails to defeat Porto in the other Group A game.

Porto can only qualify as group runner-up if it defeats Al Ahly, Palmeiras loses to Inter Miami and Porto finishes above Palmeiras on goal differential. If they had equal goal differential, the next tiebreaker is total goals scored, and after that, the tiebreaker is fair play ranking (yellow and red cards).

Al Ahly can only advance as runner-up if it defeats Porto, Inter Miami loses to Palmeiras, and Al Ahly finishes above Inter Miami on goal differential, with total goals and fair play ranking the next tiebreakers.

If Miami wins the group, its Round of 16 game would be June 28 in Philadelphia and if it advances as runner-up, it would play next June 29 in Atlanta.

The fact that Inter Miami is even in the knockout conversation is an achievement, considering the team’s inclusion in the Club World Cup was controversial because FIFA hand-picked Messi’s squad for the final spot in the 32-team field and Miami had won the Supporters Shield for best MLS record in 2024, but lost in the first round of the playoffs.

“I feel great joy, this was a very big win for us,” Messi said in a post-match interview with DAZN.com. “It took a great effort from the whole team. Not only defensively, but in the first half and until the second goal we managed the ball very well. I’m very happy because we left the first game with a bitter taste after feeling we could have won that one. So, this is a very important victory for us.”

Coach Javier Mascherano congratulated his players for their performance against a traditionally strong European club that was favored to win by most experts.

“What I told them at halftime is that more than the result, I was proud of the courage with which they played, with and without the ball,” Mascherano said. “They understood today that in football there are hierarchies, and we played a prestigious team with international level players, but if we have conviction in what we have to do and have a plan, if we support each other and are together, but especially, if we dare to play, we can compete.

“Sometimes you win. Sometimes you lose. But more important to me was how they played.”

Porto took an early lead with a penalty kick by Spaniard Samu Omorodion at the eight-minute mark.

Mascherano said he was happy to see his team did not let that early goal throw them off course. They maintained their composure.

Porto nearly doubled the lead in the 39th minute with a point-blank shot from Rodrigo Mora, but Miami defender Maxi Falcon made a huge clearance at the line after the ball had slipped by goalkeeper Oscar Ustari.

Mascherano stressed in the lead up to the game that based on the tournament results so far, barring a few exceptions, perhaps the gap between the European clubs and the rest of the world is not as wide as anticipated. That certainly was the case on Thursday.

Inter Miami, with a starting lineup that included local club academy products Allen, Ian Fray and Benja Cremaschi (all under 23 years old), went toe to toe with higher profile and higher-paid Porto players and held the Portuguese team scoreless from the run of play.

“What makes me the happiest is that our players proved to themselves that they are capable of competing at this level,” Mascherano said. “All three [academy products] played well. Ian and Benja were playing out of position. Benja has a huge heart who always puts the team ahead of his himself, and that makes it easy for a coach. Noah I have said before, he is one of my favorites, you all have probably noticed. He reminds me of me when I was a player, how I felt when I was a player. And Ian has shown huge growth this season and has great quality.”

He added that even though Inter Miami has star players with a lot of experience, the club should continue to focus on homegrown players because that local passion for a club is how great teams are built.

Telasco Segovia scored the equalizer for Inter Miami off a cross from Marcelo Weigandt two minutes into the second half.

Then, it was time for Messi magic. The Argentine captain went down at the edge of the box and was awarded a free kick. He cranked the ball into the upper right corner at the 54-minute mark, past goalkeeper Claudio Ramos’ outstretched arms, and put Miami ahead 2-1.

The entire Miami bench erupted, as did the pink-clad fans as Messi’s teammates wrapped him up in a joyous group hug. He then pointed to the sky in memory of his late-grandmother.

“This is a historic day for our club, one everyone who works for the club should celebrate,” Mascherano said. “As for its significance, it means we are still alive in the competition and on Monday will will play for a chance to be in the Round of 16 in a FIFA club tournament, which is no small feat considering where we came from.”

Asked about Messi’s performance, the coach said: “More than his goal, he is the player who guides us in how we compete, his hunger, his resilience, his desire to keep competing. From a football perspective, what can you say? He is the best player to ever play this game. What is surprising is his desire to win. [Thursday], though he was tired, he kept helping the team in any way he could to get the result. Having him gives us an advantage and his winning spirit is contagious.”

There was some bad news for Mascherano’s squad. Weigandt and Fray left the field with second-half injuries and their status for Monday is unknown.

This story was originally published June 19, 2025 at 3:27 PM.

Michelle Kaufman

Miami Herald

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Miami Herald sportswriter Michelle Kaufman has covered 14 Olympics, six World Cups, Wimbledon, U.S. Open, NCAA Basketball Tournaments, NBA Playoffs, Super Bowls and has been the soccer writer and University of Miami basketball beat writer for 25 years. She was born in Frederick, Md., and grew up in Miami.