CONCACAF CHAMPIONS CUP
Why Messi’s Inter Miami won’t play in first round of the 2024 CONCACAF Champions Cup
MLS superstar Lionel Messi will be one of the main attractions at the Champions Cup, however, his team won’t feature from the start.
On Wednesday 13 December the draw for the CONCACAF Champions Cup will take place, a tournament in which Inter Miami, the Major League Soccer club that acquired Lionel Messi in July with the aim of making an impact on the North American league, has qualified. Gerardo ‘Tata’ Martino’s team secured its spot in the tournament by clinching the Leagues Cup title, a competition that pitted all the teams from Mexican football against those from the U.S. top flight. Miami emerged victorious in the grand final against Nashville, prevailing in the penalty shootout.
Inter Miami get pass from Champions Cup first round
Out of the 27 teams qualified for the tournament, five earned direct berths to the round of 16, bypassing the first round of the competition set to commence in February 2024.
Why isn’t Inter Miami playing in the first round?
One of those teams that secured a direct berth is Inter Miami. CONCACAF chose the champions of various competitions in the season to qualify automatically, and this included the Leagues Cup, which as I said was won by the Florida-based team.
Alongside the Herons, Robin Hood (Caribbean Cup Champion), Alajuelense (Central American Cup Champion), Pachuca (Mexican Champion with the highest accumulated points in 2022-23), and Columbus Crew (MLS Cup 2023 Champion) also earned direct entries.
As a result, the Miami team will discover the opponent it will face in the Round of 16 of the CONCACAF tournament, scheduled to commence in 2024 with a new format that favors the United States and Mexico.
A total of 10 MLS teams will participate in the CONCACAF Champions Cup: Columbus Crew, Inter Miami, FC Cincinnati, St Louis City FC, Houston Dynamo, Philadelphia Union, Nashville SC, Orlando City, New England Revolution, and Vancouver Whitecaps. Meanwhile, six clubs from Mexico will be in the competition: Tigres, Chivas, Pachuca, Toluca, América, and Monterrey.