Please Messi, Not Again!
On August 31st, the Chicago Fire will host Inter Miami FC at Soldier Field. It’s a night that promises excitement and buzz around the city.
It is a night when every single seat will be filled inside the stadium, and quality soccer will be on display.
Sounds great, right? Well, the issue here is that the same things were promised just one season ago as well when Miami visited Chicago for a regular season match. Messi did not play in the match. He did not even make the trip with the team after he suffered an injury in a match prior to playing the Fire.
It was the most sought-after ticket in Chicago and the most popular soccer match in the Fire’s history. It was a complete disaster for the Fire as a club and front office staff who worked so hard to make it the event of the year. Street signs, TV commercials, massive billboards up and down expressways, and social media ads all went to waste, kind of.
The Fire, as an organization, did, in fact, make tons of money off this one night.
The stadium was indeed sold out, and the cheapest tickets in the 400 level went for roughly $250. However, it was just horrible PR for the club that pushed Messi’s image so hard. Safe to say, fans were let down, misled, and left with a bad image of the Chicago Fire. Oh, if only the club could have known Messi missing the match was a strong possibility if only…
Early this morning, just before 10 a.m., the Chicago Fire Communications Department released an official statement highlighting what would happen if the same fiasco of Messi not playing were to happen again.
They are calling it the “Fan-First Credit Guarantee,” which basically outlines what each ticket-purchasing fan can expect in case Messi is not available to play against the Fire on August 31st.
The announcement states the following:
“For tickets purchased between now and August 31, should Messi be unavailable for the match at Soldier Field, the Fire’s Fan-First Credit Guarantee will offer all single-match buyers $250 off two or more new 2025 Chicago Fire Season Ticket Memberships or $100 off two or more single match tickets for the 2025 home match versus Inter Miami. Those who have already purchased tickets for August 31 – including single-match and Season Ticket Members – will have the opportunity to claim two complimentary tickets to the Fire’s 2024 Fan Appreciation Night, presented by Zayed Law, for the October 19 match versus Nashville SC, should Messi not be available for the match versus Inter Miami. These offers will only apply to tickets purchased through the team or via Ticketmaster.”
Aside from what occurred last season, Fire’s front office want to make sure they are ahead of all possibilities this year.
In last weekend’s Copa America final between Argentina and Columbia, Messi was subbed off early in the match when he suffered an injury to his ankle. Images of Messi’s ankle surfaced all over social media, and they looked pretty bad. There is no specific update on when we can expect Messi to return to play, but the thicker part of the MLS season is happening now, and all signs point to Messi sitting out for a while. There are 4 games to be played before Inter Miami travels to Chicago. With Inter Miami sitting at the top of the conference table in first place, I can see Head Coach Tata Martino giving Messi the rest he will need and, even then, some with how well they have been playing lately. I am sure Messi’s injury and Miami’s current position in the standings triggered the Chicago Fire front office to come up with this match credit guarantee to get ahead of any chance that Messi was to miss yet again another matchup against the Fire in Chicago.
Smart move? Silly move?
The fact that the front office staff is being proactive about the situation and honest about the reality is, at the very least, commendable. I’d rather my club put out the facts and possibilities than mislead an entire city and continue to push ads down our throats of a player who very well might not even play, let alone make the trip.
Personally, I’d wait to purchase any tickets for this match in August. Inter Miami are well on their way to making the playoffs and a deep run for MLS Cup (which would occur on December 7th.) I just don’t see any reason Miami would rush Messi back onto the field. They have only lost one match since June 1st, and Messi was away on international duty
for most of June and all of July. They are playing fantastic footy without him, so it’s even more of a reason to give him all the time he needs to fully recover from the devastating injury. The newly formed Leagues Cup tournament between MLS teams and Liga MX teams begins on July 26th and will end on August 25th. I expect Inter Miami to do well in this tourney and make a deep run. They will be looking to defend their title as they won the tourney in its inaugural year last season. Keep an eye on this tournament, as it will be a good indicator of whether Messi will be good to go for the match against the Fire on August 31st. The dates line up perfectly so that fans will have enough time to monitor his return during the tournament and still have a better idea of his status for late August.
The Fire actually takes on Inter Miami tomorrow, July 20th, in Florida. Messi, of course, will not be playing in that match. After winning on the road earlier this week, the Fire have a great chance to do something they have not done in quite a while: win back-to-back matches.
Here’s to stealing all three points tomorrow!
Come on, you men in red!
PHOTO: Chicago Fire
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