Maybe Dropping $50K On An Inter Miami Ticket Isn’t Such a Good Idea

Ticket scalping is about as common in sports as tailgating before American football games.

It does seem a bit ridiculous that tickets for Inter Miami’s match against Cruz Azul in the Leagues Cup opener are selling for as much as $50,000.

But, before you break out the AmEx Black Card, you might want to see what Heron’s co-owner David Beckham said about the reason those tickets are selling for so much.

Read on…

Inter Miami Tickets Become Inflated

I get it.

You have the opportunity to watch the world’s greatest player take the field for your favorite team — you’re going to shell out some cash.

As soon as it was confirmed that Lionel Messi was signing for Inter Miami and that his first game could be Friday’s Leagues Cup clash with Cruz Azul, ticket prices went through the roof.

I admit, I looked at tickets before … $30 … then I looked at tickets after … $200.

I paid the extra money for the once-in-a-lifetime experience.

On the day of the announcement of Messi’s signing, 2,000 tickets to the match were sold, according to USA Today.

Now, tickets to Friday’s match are averaging $712 with prices going as high as $6,850. I even read somewhere that someone was selling prime seats at DRV PNK Stadium for as much as $50,000 per ticket.

Crazy talk considering the average price of an Inter Miami ticket was about $50 before Messi’s announcement.

But, I understand. You have the opportunity to see the greatest player of our generation take the field in Heron pink.

USA Today also noted road matches featuring Inter Miami aren’t much cheaper.

Tickets to Inter’s US Open Cup semifinal at FC Cincinnati are averaging $652 while the Sept. 3 league clash at Los Angeles FC sees tickets average $992 and going as high as $17,385.

David Beckham Throws Water On Inter Miami Ticket Price Inflation

Obviously, the reason for the ticket price inflation is because… well… Messi.

It’s been long expected his first availability to be called onto the pitch by new manager Tata Martino will be July 21.

But, in an interview with ESPN Argentina, Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham tempered the expectation that Messi will even play on Friday:

"We don’t know if Leo is going to play the game or if he will have minutes, because I think that, after all, he needs to be ready. We have to protect him and make sure that he is ready, because he has been on vacation and has just arrived in Miami. He has trained and looks good."

- Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham

Beckham went on to say that the decision will be between Messi and Martino on whether he gets on the pitch against Cruz Azul.

In an earlier piece, I mentioned that it was foolhardy to expect Messi to start either Inter Miami’s Leagues Cup match with Cruz Azul or even its next MLS match against Charlotte on Aug. 20.

It all depends on how far the Heron’s advance in the Leagues Cup.

If they come out of group play with a spot in the knockout rounds, it is possible Messi starts against Charlotte, or even at FC Cincinnati in the U.S. Open Cup on Aug. 23.

In the event they don’t advance out of the group stage, starting against Charlotte is much more realistic, but not guaranteed.

As I mentioned before, he just came off a full season with PSG, a vacation and a move to Miami with his family. We have to face the fact that he might not be ready for a ton of minutes on the pitch.

Then again, it’s Messi.

However, I can’t imagine how it will feel for those who spend thousands of dollars for tickets to Friday’s match with Cruz Azul only to discover the reason they spent that much money isn’t actually going to happen.