After their last victory, Inter Miami, led by Lionel Messi, qualified for the semifinals of the Leagues Cup and will face Philadelphia Union next Tuesday, who beat the Mexicans from Querétaro with a bulky 5-1.

Following the victory of the team from Miami last Friday against their counterpart from Charlotte, where the Argentine scored the last goal of the 4-0 win, the team of English superstar David Beckham managed to reach the semifinals of this tournament where teams from the MLS play against teams from the Mexican League.

With his last score, Messi completed 8 goals and thus remains the tournament's leading scorer.

Spanish player Sergio Busquets, who also played with Messi in Barcelona, said after the last game in statements shared by Reuters:

Coming here with the desire and mentality to help, and change the destiny of Miami I think we are achieving it, little by little we are going to feel better and with a lot of desire to continue, we have one more step left and hopefully it can be done.

Game Summary

In the match played at the DRV PNK stadium in Florida, Inter Miami took the lead after 12 minutes through a penalty scored by Venezuelan Josef Martínez after defender Harrison Afful fouled Ecuadorian Dixon Arroyo inside the area.

Inter Miami's second goal fell in the 32nd minute when Finn Robert Taylor headed home a pass from DeAndre Yedlin.

The home team's third goal came in the 78th minute when French defender Adilson Malanda scored into his own goal by deflecting a cross from Paraguayan Diego Gómez, who received a pass from Messi on a counterattack.

Near the end, Messi scored the fourth goal with a left-footed shot in front of the goal after a pass from Ecuadorian Leonardo Campana in the 86th minute.

Philadelphia Awaits

Minutes after going on sale Saturday afternoon, tickets for the game sold out, the Philadelphia team said on Twitter.

Tuesday’s match at Subaru Park is officially sold out of seats. A limited number of standing room only tickets remain.

To purchase a seat, visit SeatGeek, the official ticket marketplace for Philadelphia Union.

https://t.co/XThiDsRohN#DOOP pic.twitter.com/CLrItiJq2e

— Philadelphia Union (@PhilaUnion) August 12, 2023

Messi, 36, joined the Miami Major League Soccer team for a fee of about $60 million per year.

The Argentine is a seven-time Ballon d'Or winner with more than 800 goals in international and club matches.

Tickets for Union games normally cost around $40, but Messi has helped boost ticket prices by almost 500% on average, so tickets are expected to fetch record values.

"Please don't sell your tickets no matter how much money they're offering for them, please. But we know that we're going to have a packed Subaru Park. It's going to be the number one ticket in the city, for sure. I'm sure some celebrities will be out here in Philly, so I'm excited for it,” pointed out to CBS Jim Curtin, Union’s head coach.

Heading to Philly

We will face Philadelphia Union on the road for the @leaguescup Semifinals on Tuesday, August 15. pic.twitter.com/mR6xMYYJes

— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) August 12, 2023

About the Tournament

The Leagues Cup is a tournament endorsed by Concacaf that is played by the 18 clubs in Mexico and the 29 in the MLS. The first three places will secure their ticket to the Concacaf Champions Cup.

The Leagues Cup champion will qualify directly to the round of 16 of the Concacaf Champions Cup.