The Major League Soccer team announced that Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami will play two matches in Saudi Arabia at the beginning of next year. One of the matches will be against Cristiano Ronaldo and his side Al-Nassr, who are regular opponents for Inter Miami.
As part of the team’s first foreign tour, which will also include visits to El Salvador and Hong Kong, the Riyadh Season Cup, which follows a round-robin format and has three teams competing against each other, will be held.
On January 29, Miami will compete against Al-Hilal in the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh. A few days later, on February 1, Miami will compete against Al-Nassr at the exact location.
“This is another major opportunity to create lasting relationships with passionate fans,” Inter Miami chief business officer Xavier Asensi stated in a news statement. “This is a tremendous opportunity.”
“We are excited to connect with new supporters in Saudi Arabia and also hope people all over the world will be tuning in to see a pair of dream matches like these.”
Messi and Ronaldo have competed against each other more than thirty times during their careers. They have combined to win thirteen Ballon d’Or honors, with the Argentine taking the lead in that race by a score of eight to five.
After leaving Paris Saint-Germain, Messi was allowed to play in the Saudi League but chose to join Miami instead. While with Miami, he guided the team to victory in the League Cup and caused ticket prices to rise.
