Is the honeymoon over for Lionel Messi and his Inter Miami squad with MLS fans?

Signing Lionel Messi in 2023 and having the "GOAT" in MLS opened the doors to whole new levels of business for the league that it had been trying to unlock for decades: record sponsorships, global television audiences, and insane numbers of new fans tuning in from all over the world. 

For a while, it felt too good to be true. But fast forward two years later and the honeymoon season might be over. While Messi remains in the headlines and fills arenas, many fans of MLS are becoming frustrated with Inter Miami's all-star-esque roster, as well as what they consider to be serious favoritism from the league.

Aside from Leo Messi's loyal fans, most people are growing impatient with the "club in pink".

The Star-heavy roster

Inter Miami's strategy has been simple: build everything around Messi. That means bring in world-class players with whom he already has experience and chemistry. 
Ex-FC Barcelona teammates Sergio Busquets, Luis Suárez and Jordi Alba came in 2023, and two years later World Cup comes fellow Argentina world cup champion Rodrigo De Paul. 

For Miami, they have a dream team. For a lot of the league, it's close to a nightmare. 

Recent controversies involving Inter Miami

The frustrations have only gotten louder since Inter Miami was infamously granted a spot in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup as hosts, without winning the MLS Cup. 
For most fans of the league, that was not as much about sporting merit as it was about the commercial weight of Lionel Messi.

To compound the sense of entitlement, the 2025 Leagues Cup Final enters the chat. Seattle Sounders beat Inter Miami 3–0 in the Final, but it ended in chaos.

Sergio Busquets punched 20-year-old Obed Vargas and in a ridiculous scene, Luis Suárez spat on a staff member from Seattle. And the MLS has been silent since.

This shocked and rightfully added to the feeling that they were playing under a different set of rules than the rest of the league.

The contrast has now been made sharper after some of MLS's latest disciplinary decisions. A few days after the spitting incident, MLS's Disciplinary Committee fined Charlotte FC forward Idan Toklomati for making an inappropriate gesture in the 87th minute of Charlotte's match against the New England Revolution. 

People only quickly pointed out the expediency of that ruling compared to the utter silence around the Miami post-final actions.

Growing criticism online

Frustration is building on social media. For people online, the league is too fixated on the glitz and glamour of Inter Miami, detracting from all the other teams.

One fan posted: "Messi, Busquets, and Suárez, despite their immense talent, often exhibit a sense of entitlement, showing disrespect to opponents, referees, and fans, which strains team harmony and public perception."

Another added: "Everyone is still waiting on the league's response to the actions Inter Miami players (Suárez, Busquets, Falcón and Avilés). Can't wait for your response and we hope you don't show bias and continued favoritism to the club in pink."

Many others called for a suspension and how the MLS will probably "turn a blind eye" on this. Others was far less polite.

So for the moment, the MLS has made no public comment about the post-match behaviour of the Inter Miami players. It seems that silence will continue to grow even more anger amongst fans who would argue the league is going to lose credibility if it doesn't put the same standards in place for Miami it puts in place for everyone else.

Lionel Messi's signing created the kind of attention that MLS had been looking for, for decades. And for a while it worked and everything Messi touched had become gold: ticket sales, media rights, international buzz, etc.

Unfortunately for Miami, the gold is fading. The controversies, the preferential treatment and the lack of action from the league has fans fed up now. 

MLS will lose credibility with the fans that show up and fill stadiums week in and week out, if it keeps providing protection to its biggest star and the players around him. If it takes action, it will prove that MLS is not above following the rules. But either way, one thing is clear, the honeymoon phase is over.