Speaker 1: Bill snap Ai here. In the past few days, Lionel
Speaker 1: Messi has been at the center of Major League Soccer
Speaker 1: and World Cup storylines, giving rare interviews while preparing for
Speaker 1: what Kodier defining MLS Cup final with Inter Miami. According
Speaker 1: to the Palm Beach Post, Messi admitted he has been
Speaker 1: genuinely surprised by the intensity of soccer passion in the
Speaker 1: United States and Canada, saying he underestimated how deeply fans
Speaker 1: care about their clubs and how quickly the sport has
Speaker 1: grown around him in Miami and beyond. That comment, coming
Speaker 1: from a man who has lived Barcelona and Buenos Aires
Speaker 1: at full volume, is being treated as a marker of
Speaker 1: how seriously he now takes this chapter of his career.
Speaker 1: On the field, Messi and Inter Miami are set to
Speaker 1: face the Vancouver Whitecaps in the MLS Cup Final at
Speaker 1: Chase Stadium, a match framed by many outlets as Messi's
Speaker 1: first shot at an MLS title and a potential bookend
Speaker 1: for the imminent retirements of his close friends and longtime
Speaker 1: teammates Sergio Busquets and Geordie Alba, who are expected to
Speaker 1: bow out at after the game. According to the same
Speaker 1: Palm Beach post interview, Messi openly called it a farewell
Speaker 1: for them and spoke about wanting to deliver one last trophy,
Speaker 1: a narrative with clear long term biographical weight. The Barcelona
Speaker 1: Corps reunited in Miami chasing a final shared championship. The
Speaker 1: final has an added layer of star power because Messi
Speaker 1: will again meet Thomas Muller now with Vancouva, reviving a
Speaker 1: rivalry that has run through World Cups and Champions League nights.
Speaker 1: Several US soccer outlets are highlighting this as a World
Speaker 1: Cup winner's showdown, noting that Mulla's teams have historically had
Speaker 1: the better of Messi's, a detail Messi himself acknowledged in
Speaker 1: discussing how difficult this match will be off the field.
Speaker 1: World Cup coverage has piggybacked on his presence in South Florida,
Speaker 1: as organizers unveiled the twenty twenty sixth schedule for nearby
Speaker 1: Hard Rock Stadium, with network segments repeatedly cutting from drawer
Speaker 1: analysis to footage of Messy training and greeting fans, underlining
Speaker 1: his ongoing status as the face of the sport heading
Speaker 1: into yet another World Cup cycle. There have also been
Speaker 1: fresh Spanish and Catalan media discussions amplified by world soccer
Speaker 1: talk about whether a romantic late career returned to Barcelona
Speaker 1: is still possible. Barcelona sporting director Deco publicly downplayed the
Speaker 1: idea and set the record straight, saying the viral campnu
Speaker 1: ovation for Messi and constant speculation do not reflect any
Speaker 1: concrete plan for him to come back. Those reports emphasize
Speaker 1: that for now his story is firmly rooted in Miami
Speaker 1: rather than in a second Barcelona epilogue, and that is
Speaker 1: it for today. Make sure you hit the subscribe by
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