Lionel Messi: Ballon d’Or Winner Watches Son Play for Inter Miami Against Barcelona Academy

• Lionel Messi is back in Miami after winning his 8th Ballon d'Or in Paris on Monday
• Inter Miami have no games lined up after they cancelled their friendly matches in China
• Messi is spending time with the club's academy as he watches his son Mateo play

Lionel Messi is enjoying his time back in the United States after winning his eighth Ballon d'Or. He has been spending time with the Inter Miami Academy's different age groups.

Miami missed out on the Major League Soccer playoff despite a late fight when Messi joined in July and, as such, they have no games lined up till pre-season in January.

Per Marca, the club cancelled their tour of China, where they were due to play two games after the organiser pulled out after the death of Chinese Premier Li Keqiang.

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Consequently, Messi has only two official games left to play this year - the CONMEBOL edition of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Uruguay and Brazil.

Messi watches son at Inter Miami academy

Since moving to Miami, Messi's sons have been enrolled in different age categories at the club's academy, with Thiago and Mateo already getting into action with their groups.

As seen in a video making rounds on social media, the Argentina captain was in the stands watching Mateo play for the U10s against his former club, Barcelona Academy.

He was with teammate Sergio Busquets, with whom he played together in Spain before they reunited in Florida.

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Thiago Messi makes Inter Miami debut

Sports Brief previously reported on Thiago Messi's Inter Miami academy debut in a friendly game for the U12, as he helped the team to a 2-0 victory over Weston FC in their first game.

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The 11-year-old joined the academy in August and has been training with the team while his father continues to generate waves in his new adventure.

Thiago scores first Inter Miami goal

Sports Brief also reported on Thiago scoring for Inter Miami academy, his first goal coming off a brilliant right-footed volley to help the team win 2-0 during a friendly game.

The goal was similar to the ones his father has scored so many times in his career, with fans on social media claiming he was following in his father's footsteps.