THE ROAD TO THE FINAL IS OPEN
If they beat Atlanta United in the second match at 6am on November 3 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Messi and Inter Miami will advance quickly and have many advantages to prepare for the Eastern Conference play-off semi-finals, before aiming to win the MLS Cup - the US professional soccer tournament, in the 2024 season.
Messi's (right) appeal gives MLS great influence in the US
The opportunity is wide open for Messi, because the next opponent Inter Miami will face if they advance could be the same city club Orlando City SC - the team that won 2-0 against Charlotte FC in the first match of the first round of the MLS Cup playoffs. Orlando City SC as well as Inter Miami are considered to have a high chance of winning the second match against their opponents, to be able to meet in the epic match in the Eastern region playoff semi-finals. In the MLS round of the season, Inter Miami beat Orlando City SC 5-0 and drew 0-0. Therefore, if they meet again, Messi and his teammates will have a high chance of continuing to defeat their rivals to reach the Eastern region playoff final.
Another advantage for Messi and his teammates is that Columbus Crew started the match with a defeat at home (this is considered the biggest opponent that can prevent Inter Miami from reaching the regional title). The reigning MLS Cup champion Columbus Crew surprisingly lost 0-1 to New York Red Bulls, so they must win their remaining two matches, including the upcoming away match, to be able to continue. If they do this, Columbus Crew can face FC Cincinnati in the semi-finals, the team that easily won the first match 1-0 against New York City FC.
Therefore, to decide their own chance when the road to the final is open, Messi and his teammates need to put all their efforts into defeating Atlanta United in the second match, so that they do not need to use the third match even though they are playing at home. Thereby, they will have time to rest and carefully analyze the next opponents.
A NEW RECORD IS ABOUT TO BREAK
The match between Inter Miami and Atlanta United at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on November 3 is expected to have about 75,000 spectators, thereby setting a record for the most spectators in a match of the season.
Previously, according to MLS statistics, the match that held the record for the most viewers was Inter Miami's 3-2 win over Sporting Kansas City on April 14 with 72,610 spectators. But in the near future, this record is likely to be surpassed, as Mercedes-Benz Stadium has expanded its maximum capacity when Atlanta United hosts Inter Miami. American press said that more than 70,000 fans have bought tickets, and the remaining tickets will likely be sold out by match day.
Meanwhile, the Apple TV channel announced that the match between Inter Miami and Atlanta United 2-1 on October 26 set a record for the most viewers on this channel when broadcasting live sporting events. This became very special because it took place at the same time as many other top sporting events in the US such as the World Series baseball tournament. In addition, the social network TikTok, when live streaming all of Messi's developments on the field, at times attracted more than 100,000 viewers, setting a record for a live session in the history of this platform.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/messi-truoc-co-hoi-lon-vo-dich-mls-cup-185241031214338726.htm
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