Has Inter Miami star Lionel Messi ever played in Mexico? How many times?

Lionel Messi will play his first ever competitive match in Mexico after Inter Miami and Monterrey qualified for the quarter-finals of the CONCACAF Champions Cup. The Argentina has, however, played twice before on Mexican soil, albeit in charity matches.

Where and when has Messi played in Mexico?

In 2011, the then Barcelona playmaker was the star of a ‘Messi and Friends’ charity game at Estadio Azul (now Estadio Ciudad de los Deportes) in Mexico City, leading “his” team against a Rest of the World XI. The Argentine star almost missed the event because of travel disruption caused by a volcano reputing and had a stomach problem when he did eventually land in Mexico.

“We were about to launch the first global sports social network, Fanatiks, and a Colombian friend called me to ask if we knew of anyone interested in doing a ‘Messi and Friends’ type match.

“Messi had already been doing this type of match for a couple of years, he played one in Panama, and that’s when the proposal was put on the table. Thinking about whether a club in Mexico would be interested, we took the opportunity to launch the platform. That’s how the madness of bring Lionel Messi to Mexico began,” explained José Manuel Bolívar, partner and director of operations at Fanatiks, to ESPN.

Leo Messi Foundation friendly in Quintana Roo

The following year, Messi played another charity match in Quintana Roo, although the government of the south-eastern Mexican state revealed in a statement they had paid 1,160,000 pesos (around $90,000 at the time) to the Leo Messi Foundation in exchange.

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At the age of 36, the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner will finally play his first competitive fixture on Mexican soil, as Inter Miami travel south of the border to face Monterrey in the CONCACAF Champions Cup quarter-finals.

The first leg will be played at Chase Stadium in Florida on 2/3/4 April, with the return to be held at Estadio BBVA the following week (9/10/11 April). The exact dates are expected to be confirmed in the coming days.