Messi Refuses to Let World Cup Heartbreak Define Him, Eyes Summer Glory

Lionel Messi and Rodrigo De Paul came up empty-handed at the World Cup on Sunday, as Argentina suffered a painful defeat to Spain in extra time. However, their pursuit of silverware this summer remains very much in play. 

With the World Cup now behind them, the pair will head back to MLS club Inter Miami to resume the North American campaign, with the opportunity to claim three team trophies before 2026 concludes—including one potentially as early as this summer.

The Leagues Cup, the yearly competition featuring select MLS clubs and every team from Mexico's Liga MX, is scheduled to get underway in early August and has traditionally been a fruitful tournament for the Herons. In 2023, just one month after Messi arrived as a free agent, they captured the entire competition, and in 2025, they reached the final before a controversy-laden defeat to the Seattle Sounders in front of a packed Lumen Field. 

While neither player is expected to feature in Miami's first post-World Cup fixture—a regular-season clash against the Chicago Fire on Wednesday—both are anticipated to be ready for the Leagues Cup group stage, which gets underway on Aug. 5. 

Should Inter Miami mount another run to the championship, they would become the first club to reach three finals in the tournament's history and the first to claim the title twice. For Messi, a victory would push his world-record trophy haul to 47 and deliver a triumphant moment just 48 days after Argentina's World Cup heartbreak. 

How Does Leagues Cup Work?

Leagues Cup includes 18 of the 30 MLS clubs and all 18 Liga MX sides, competing across leagues in three "Phase One" matches each. Those results are used to rank teams in a standings table alongside their respective MLS or Liga MX counterparts, with the top four from each league advancing to the knockout rounds. 

The quarterfinals launch the single-elimination knockout stage with guaranteed cross-league matchups, while the semifinals and final give clubs from the same league the opportunity to face one another. 

During Phase One, match victors will receive the standard three points for a win and one point for a draw after 90 minutes. However, all drawn matches will proceed to a penalty shootout, with the shootout winner collecting two points and the loser earning one.

Inter Miami's Leagues Cup Schedule

Inter Miami's bid for a second Leagues Cup crown will begin with three Phase One home fixtures against Atlético San Luis, CF Monterrey, and Club Léon. In the Monterrey match, Miami forward Germán Berterame will go up against his former club. Meanwhile, Hugo Cuypers—who topped the MLS Golden Boot standings with Chicago Fire heading into the World Cup—could prove influential for Monterrey after recently signing with the side. 

Dates for the quarterfinals and semifinals are yet to be confirmed, but the final and third-place match are scheduled for Sept. 6, with the two finalists and the third-place team each earning berths in the 2027 Concacaf Champions Cup. 

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Inter Miami Leagues Cup Group Stage Schedule