Inter Miami faced Los Angeles in front of a star-studded audience that only Tinseltown can offer but Lionel Messi delivered two assists in a performance worthy of the Hollywood stage.
Despite Messi’s fairytale arrival in Miami, the Herons still faced a challenge to make the MLS playoffs but they kept the blockbuster plot alive with a 3-1 win over the reigning MLS Cup champions Sunday night.
LAFC had Miami on the back foot almost immediately after the whistle but Facundo Farias tore up the script, opening the scoring against the pace of play in the 14th minute.
Jordi Alba doubled the Herons’ lead shortly after the break before Messi set Leonardo Campana to all but seal the win.
However, Ryan Hollingshead had tried to had a lifeline to the hosts as he pulled one back in the 90th minute but it came a little to late as LAFC failed to rally enough to threaten Miami.
Inter Miami beat Los Angeles FC 2-0 in MLS at BMO Stadium on Sunday night
Facundo Farias (left) opened the scoring against the pace of play in the 14th minute
Messi’s former Barcelona teammate Jordi Alba doubled Miami’s lead in the second half
Miami is now unbeaten in 11 matches across all competitions since Messi joined the club in mid-July.
Sunday’s match though will be Messi’s last with Miami for at least the next two weeks. The 36-year-old will be part of Argentina’s World Cup qualifiers against Ecuador on Thursday and Bolivia five days later
Messi has 11 goals and eight assists for Miami, which is eight points out of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with eight regular-season matches remaining.
Miami’s visit to the defending MLS Cup champions was marked as one of the highlight games since Messi signed. It was viewed by 22,921 fans, a record for LAFC’s BMO Stadium.
It also vaulted into one of the most-demanded tickets in MLS’ 27-year history.
According to TickPick, the average purchase price for the match was $717, which was 515 percent more than the $110 before he signed.
By comparison, Beyonce’s concert at SoFi Stadium had an average purchase price of $493.
Among the celebrities in attendance were Prince Harry, LAFC co-owner Will Farrell, Leonardo DiCaprio, Selena Gomez, Owen Wilson, Mario Lopez and Edward Norton.
Messi set up Leonardo Campana (not pictured) for the Herons’ third to all bit seal the win
The World Cup winner celebrates with Farias after Inter Miami snatched the lead
‘Ted Lasso’ stars Jason Sudeikis and Brendan Hunt also were at the game.
Messi had a wide-open shot in front of the net in the 38th minute, but McCarthy used his left foot to make the save.
Farías, who turned 21 on Aug. 28, made his second start since joining the club in late July and scored his first goal in the 14th minute.
Tomas Avilés made a great pass at midfield to as Farías was running up the right side of the field. Farías had an opening between two LAFC defenders and made a sliding shot with his outstretched right foot that beat LAFC goalkeeper John McCarthy hit the far post and bounced in.
Alba doubled LAFC’s advantage in the 51st minute with a left-footer. Messi had a 2-on-1 breakaway in the 83rd minute before passing to Campana, who had a wide-open shot at the net.
Hollingshead averted the shutout with a header off a corner kick.
The Herons’ delivered the triumphant performance in front of an A-List crowd with actual royalty watching soccer royalty.
Prince Harry looked giddy with excitement as he watched soccer legend Lionel Messi help Inter Miami defeat Los Angeles Football Club on Sunday night – which his enthusiasm for the match in sharp contrast to his evident boredom at a Beyonce concert on Friday night.
Prince Harry was seen on Sunday night attending a LAFC soccer match against Inter Miami
Will Ferrell, who co-owns LAFC, was at the match on Sunday night
An animated Selena Gomez was spotted watching the game from the stands
Ted Lasso star Jason Sudeikis was among those at the star-studded event on Sunday
The 38-year-old chuckled and happily scrunched up an LAFC scarf as he cheered on his local team from the stands of the BMO Stadium in the south of the city.
Owen Wilson showed his allegiance to the home side with a LAFC shirt and baseball cap, as did Mario Lopez.
Jason Sudeikis, who plays soccer coach Ted Lasso in the smash hit Apple TV series, was in a bright orange hoodie.
An animated Selena Gomez was also in the stands, while DiCaprio tried to keep a low profile in a dark baseball cap and sunglasses for the evening event. Kick off was at 10pm local time.
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