Supporters of Major League Soccer (MLS) club Inter Miami CF were able to celebrate Lionel Messi’s historic eighth Ballon d’Or win last month with an engaging evening of fan-facing activities.
Inter Miami’s legendary number 10 and captain joined the club earlier this year, and fans have lapped up the opportunity to witness the World Cup winner’s talents on the field.
On November 10 at Inter Miami’s DRV PNK Stadium, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, a celebration was held to mark Messi’s eighth Ballon d’Or win, with the trophy presented to fans ahead of a night of planned festivities.
The ‘Noche d’Or’ event also featured a friendly against New York City FC, followed by a night of partying.
Magic Messi’s gold carpet entrance
The Ballon d’Or trophy is awarded to the male footballer that is considered to have performed the best over the past season. Messi has previously been voted as the best player in the world in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019 and 2021.
During his prolific career, Messi has won 10 Spanish LaLiga titles, seven Copa del Rey trophies and the UEFA Champions League four times. With his home country of Argentina, he won the 2021 Copa América and the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
Ahead of the friendly and the night of celebrations, the former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain player was welcomed to the pitch by Inter Miami managing owner Jorge Mas and brother Jose Mas, as well as MLS Commissioner Don Garber, after walking down a gold carpet laid out in front of him.
A new chapter for Inter
During his speech, Jorge Mas said that Messi had not only started a new chapter in his life, but had also written “a new chapter in the history” of Inter Miami football club.
In his own speech to the adoring crowd, Messi said: “I had no doubts we were going to have fun, we were going to enjoy. And today I have no doubts, just like in the beginning, that next year will be much better. We’re going to keep on having fun, keep on winning titles.”
Messi featured in the entirety of the friendly against NYCFC, which ended in a 2-1 loss for the home side. Despite this, the crowd still celebrated their eight-time Ballon d’Or winner with gusto.
An afterparty at the stadium’s hospitality offering, XBTO NW Club, featured specialty food and beverage options, meaning fans could continue the celebrations into the night.
With the theme being gold to match Messi’s trophy, there were also gold fireworks lined up for the event. Not only this, but in a nod to the eighth Ballon d’Or victory, $8.88 Ballon d’Or margaritas were on sale for fans to really get into the spirit of the party.
Inter Miami CF to take on Asia
With a focus on catering to Inter Miami fans worldwide, the MLS club has also announced that it will be traveling to Asia in February for its first-ever international tour. The team are set to play a match against ‘The Hong Kong Team’, which will feature players from the Hong Kong First Division League.
The match will be held at the 40,000-capacity Hong Kong Stadium on February 4.
Fans will also be able to purchase tickets to watch an open training session the day before the game.
Image Credit: Hayden Schiff / CC BY 4.0
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