Two years after landing in MLS and accumulating disappointments, Lionel Messi gave Inter Miami its first league title on Saturday with a 3-1 win over Vancouver in what was the farewell to professional soccer for Spaniards Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba.
It was a sunny and warm afternoon in Fort Lauderdale, north of Miami, ideal for the MLS Cup. In addition to the farewell of Busquets and Messi, there was a new duel between Messi and the German Thomas Müeller, captain of the Canadians.
Inter Miami MLS champion
IT’S OURS!!! 2025 MLS CUP CHAMPIONSSSSSS 🏆#CHAMPIONS pic.twitter.com/YM121V6ksO
– Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) December 6, 2025
Fate seemed to have conjured that this time Inter would be able to achieve success.
Fortune smiled on them right from the start, making it 1-0 in the eighth minute thanks to a Vancouver own goal from an unlucky move by Colombian Édier Ocampo.
Messi started the move with a great pass to Rodrigo de Paul who opened up on the right flank for Tadeo Allende, who put in a cross that had Matteo Silvetti on target but Ocampo pushed wide without Yohei Takaoka being able to do anything.
That right flank with Messi and Allende created danger in the early part of the match.
Silvetti had the second in his boots from another Allende cross, but the ball slipped through his legs.
From that point on, Vancouver began to overcome the hostile atmosphere in Miami, approaching Rocco Rios’ goal with great danger and dominating Javier Mascherano’s men.
In the 33rd minute, Rios made a save from Brian White to save Inter for the first time this afternoon.
He was in the picture again five minutes later, blocking a close-range shot from Emmanuel Sabbi.
And in the 41st minute he saved a header from Müeller for a Vancouver team that was looking for an equalizer.
Vancouver takes the fight to Vancouver
DALE CAMPEOOOOOOON DALE CAMPEOOOOOOON 🍾💗 pic.twitter.com/uqvCRuGLRJ
– Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) December 7, 2025
Vancouver maintained the pressure at the restart with which they had closed out the first half until they picked up the equalizer in the 60th minute.
Sabbi broke down the right and passed to White in front of the goal who, with his back to goal, set up Ali Ahmed, who struck the near post and converted after a mistake by Argentine goalkeeper Rios, whose save ended up in the back of the net.
With almost no time to assimilate the equalizer, Sabbi broke through the lines, got into the danger zone and fired a shot that hit both posts – a very fortunate move for Inter.
Just at that moment, Vancouver’s best, Inter Miami went ahead again. Messi stole a ball in a dangerous area from Andres Cubas and gave it to Rodrigo de Paul who was left alone in front of Takaoka to put the score at 2-1. Minute 71.
That’s when the game began to slip away from Vancouver, who never again dominated or had chances as nerves began to get the better of their players.
Busquets and Messi, in their last dance, controlled the passing of the minutes until, in the added time, the Argentine star gave his second lethal assist of the afternoon, this time to Allende, who made it 3-1.
There was no time for more. The pharaonic project of David Beckham and the Mas brothers, which recreated Josep Guardiola’s Barcelona in Miami and the MLS, thus achieved its greatest sporting success five years after its debut.
Technical data
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3. Inter Miami: Rocco Rios; Ian Fray (Marcelo Weigandt, m.90+1), Maximiliano Falcon, Noah Allen, Jordi Alba; Rodrigo de Paul, Sergio Busquets, Baltasar Rodriguez (Telasco Segovia, m.56); Matteo Silvetti (Yannick Bright, m.78), Tadeo Allende and Lionel Messi.
Coach: Javier Mascherano.
Vancouver: Yohei Takaoka; Mathías Laborda, Ralph Priso (Joedrick Pupe, m.68), Tristan Blackmon, Édier Ocampo; Andrés Cubas (Kenji Cabrera, m.82), Sebastian Berhalter Ali Ahmed (Ryan Gauld, m.68), Thomas Müeller, Emmanuel Sabbi (Jayden Nelson, m.90+1); Brian White.
Coach: Jesper Sørensen.
Goals: 1-0, minute 8: Édier Ocampo, own goal. 1-1, 60th minute: Ali Ahmed. 2-1, 71st minute: Rodrigo de Paul. 3-1, 90+6 minutes: Tadeo Allende.
Referee: Drew Fischer (Canada). Yellow cards for Rodriguez, Falcon, De Paul, White, Ocampo, Blackman, Cubas and Laborda.
Incidents: Final of the MLS Cup played at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale (Florida) in front of 21,500 spectators.
Filed under: Inter Miami MLS champion
With information from EFE
