The MLS commissioner highlighted Messi’s arrival: “The most spectacular year in our history”

After Lionel Messi has arrived in MLS, not only has Inter Miami’s popularity grown around the world, despite the figure of David Beckham, but also soccer has grown a lot in the United States. Don Garber, the league’s commissioner, spoke about the impact. Through a press conference held as part of the end of the season, he said that “it is the best player of all time who came to our league. I think history will recognize 2023 as the Year of Messi, but from my own perspective, it was perhaps the most spectacular year in our history for a number of reasons.” Messi took MLS to a height that’s hard to imagine, but we had a lot more to celebrate. Messi’s arrival capped off a lot of the work done by the league on and off the field, helping to deliver the message that MLS can be the league of choice for the best players in the world.” He concluded: “Messi had plenty of options for the next chapter of his iconic football career. The magnitude of his decision to join MLS cannot be underestimated. A world champion and eight-time Ballon d’Or winner plays in our league. Not only are we part of the global conversation about sports, but also one of the biggest stories in the world, certainly one of the biggest stories this year.” On the other hand, he said the league has “no plans” to modify the current rules, which means that teams will continue to have three spots for “designated players” or franchise, and is not interested in increasing the limit to four.

Original source in Spanish