Inter Miami has announced that the team’s first preseason game will be played against the El Salvador national team in San Salvador on January 19.
‘We’re excited to start announcing our preseason plans and preparations ahead of a thrilling 2024 campaign,’ the club said on Thursday.
‘We look forward to facing the El Salvador national team in what will be a good first test for our squad against the best players from the country,’ said Chief Soccer Officer and Sporting Director Chris Henderson.
Lionel Messi and Co will take on the Central American nation at Estadio Cuscatlan as they prepare for the new MLS campaign.
There has been uncertainty over Miami’s preseason plans recently. Earlier this month it was announced that Messi and Co were set to play against Cristiano Ronaldo and Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia in a blockbuster friendly in February.
Inter Miami have officially announced their first preseason game for Lionel Messi and the team
Miami will play the El Salvadorian national team on January 19th in San Salvador
However, just hours later that evening Inter Miami released a statement, blasting the claim as ‘inaccurate.’
The statement said, via ESPN, that team owner Jorge Mas ‘has made no comments, publicly or privately, in relation to the preseason tour.’
But shortly after the stance from the MLS outfit changed once after deleting the statement from their club website.
El Salvador, meanwhile, sits at No 78 in the FIFA rankings. The national team recently earned a pair of draws in friendlies against Curacao in November.
Inter Miami’s season tickets for the 2024 season recently sold out, despite fans previously expressed outrage over extreme price hikes.
The official announcement was made on the franchise’s X page along with a press release
The announcement follows the club’s huge price increase for the forthcoming season, with the cheapest season ticket for 2023 ($485) nearly doubling in cost ($884).
A ticket in the Midfield Club – a lower-level seat – costs $7,650 for next season when last season it was $3,600.
‘F***ing disrespectful towards your loyal fans,’ one fumed on X. ‘My 2023 season ticket plan was $485 and it has now increased to $884.’
‘We still don’t have a real stadium and the improvement in play quality doesn’t reflect the 82% increase in pricing.’
