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Inter Miami CF kicked off its 2025 campaign with a 1-0 victory over Sporting Kansas City in the first leg of the first round of the Concacaf Champions Cup at Children’s Mercy Park.
Though Concacaf postponed the game by 24 hours to Wednesday night because of the winter storm that brought heavy snow to Kansas City, players continued to face frigid conditions — with temperatures hitting 3 degrees Fahrenheit with a “real feel” of minus 8 by halftime.
Still, Lionel Messi found a way to stun the opposing defense and provide fans with a moment of excitement in the second half. Longtime teammate Sergio Busquets provided a ball into the box for Messi to bring down before beating his defender and sending his shot into the opposite corner.
The rest of the match saw a back-and-forth game between the two sides, amounting to a total of 16 shots (seven from Sporting KC and nine by Miami).
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Miami entered the match without Jordi Alba, who was serving a suspension for receiving a red card in the 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup quarterfinal clash against CF Monterrey. First-choice goalkeeper Drake Callender was also sidelined with an injury.
Despite the absences, the team picked up a crucial victory from the first leg and marked an important away goal that could prove to be the difference in the series.
Concacaf rules state that if aggregate goals are equal, the away goals rule is applied and counts as the first tiebreaker.
Kansas City would now need to score at least two goals at Chase Stadium in order to advance to the next round in regulation time when the teams meet in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for the second leg on Feb. 25.