Lionel Messi “effect” in the MLS keeps on going as star has now set back-to-back away attendance records in the first two 2026 MLS games with Inter Miami.
Now in his fourth MLS season since arriving in 2023, Lionel Messi continues to prove that the excitement surrounding him shows no signs of cooling off. With the 2026 campaign barely underway, the Inter Miami star has already set back-to-back away attendance records in the opening two matchdays of the season.
To launch the 2026 season, MLS arranged a marquee Matchday 1 showdown between LAFC and Inter Miami, bringing together two of the league’s biggest global stars in Son Heung-min and Messi on the same night. Seizing the moment, LAFC relocated the match from their regular home at BMO Stadium to the iconic LA Memorial Coliseum, a decision that more than justified itself.
The February 21 clash drew a crowd of 75,673 to the Coliseum to watch what turned into a dominant 3-0 home victory. The attendance set the record for the largest crowd at an MLS season opener, while also contributing to the biggest opening weekend attendance in league history, and ranking as the second-largest crowd ever recorded for a regular-season MLS match.
D.C. United took a similar approach, moving their home game against Inter Miami from the 20,000-capacity Audi Field to M&T Bank Stadium, home of the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens. The result was a crowd of 72,026 on Saturday, not only the largest in D.C. United’s history as one of the league’s founding clubs, but the biggest ever recorded at that venue.
The stadium screen shows the match attendance during the D.C. United vs. Inter Miami CF MLS game at M&T Bank Stadium.
The previous M&T Bank Stadium record had stood since January 15, 2012, when 71,547 fans packed the building for the Ravens’ 2011 AFC Divisional Playoff game against the Houston Texans, a 20-13 Baltimore victory that stood as the largest crowd in franchise history. Messi has now surpassed that mark after more than 14 years, a reminder that his influence on sport extends well beyond the soccer field.
Will Messi break another consecutive attendance record in the MLS?
Inter Miami will briefly shift their attention away from league play, with the first leg of the 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup Round of 16 against Nashville SC at Geodis Park coming up on Wednesday. But the next MLS attendance test is already on the horizon, with the Herons set to visit Charlotte FC at Bank of America Stadium on Saturday, March 14 for Matchday 3.
That fixture presents another opportunity for Messi to extend his remarkable away attendance streak. Bank of America Stadium holds 74,867 fans, and the venue record stands at 74,479, set during Charlotte FC’s inaugural home match against the LA Galaxy on March 5, 2022. Eclipsing that mark, however, will be far from straightforward.
In recent seasons, Charlotte have maintained a policy of limiting MLS regular-season games to a lower-bowl sellout rather than opening the full stadium, and that approach has applied to Messi’s visits as well. In 2025, for example, just 35,000 tickets were made available for his appearance. The only time Charlotte opened the full stadium for a Messi game, it drew 66,101, suggesting that unless the club changes its approach, the Argentine’s remarkable streak of away attendance records could come to an end.