Inside Inter Miami CF’s Preseason: Fans at Hotel Gyms, Intense Emotions and Messi’s English | OneFootball

Globe-trotting with Inter Miami CF isn’t for the faint-hearted. While most MLS teams camp out in Spain or California for preseason, Lionel Messi’s Herons travel worldwide.

In 2024, the team visited El Salvador, Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong, Argentina, and Dallas. The 2025 preseason included stops in Las Vegas, Peru, Panama and Honduras before wrapping up in its home state.

Whichever route, it’s a busy one––far different than any of the other 29 clubs.

“We were gone for so long [in 2024] and were just on this world tour,” midfielder Julian Gressel said on his Player-Manager Podcast. “This year, we've been at home the whole time. We've trained at our training facility every training session and only travelled to the games, just like regular MLS away trips. So that's been really different than I'm used to in preseason, but also really nice.”

Unlike any other MLS side, Inter Miami’s preseason matches don’t occur in front of small crowds at training grounds. Instead, they’re televised spectacles, with fans flocking the hotels and buses just to catch a glimpse of the superstars.

For Gressel, that meant getting caught in the fandom. Often sharing the same side of the bus with Messi and Jordi Alba, he sees the chaos of fans flanking them as they arrive, leaning in for a look or a dream autograph.

“People go crazy on my side of the bus... a girl was just holding up a shin guard with a pen in her hand, and she was just holding it straight up in the air, and just bawling her eyes out, just crying because she probably wanted an autograph,” Gressel said. “Leo and those guys bring out so many emotions and people because of what they do or did on the field, right?”

Even though the two-time MLS Cup Champion looks up to Messi and the former Barcelona stars, it’s different than most. It’s not lost on him of the kinds of players he calls teammates, but when they’re just that, a sense of normalcy has to set in.

Still, that stardom rubs off on all the players on the roster. During hotel stays, the club often uses a service elevator to avoid fans flocking them in the lobby and on their floor. But when it came time for a workout, Gressel couldn’t avoid the chaos.

“I knew I wasn't starting [in Panama], so in the morning, I went to the hotel gym to do a little activation lift, and there were regular guests in the lobby and everywhere... I was like, I'm gonna go in the regular elevator. I'm not that big of a player; I can do this,” he said.

“I went down there, and two security guards immediately came with me, and honestly, I had to stand in front of the gym so that people wouldn't come in asking for autographs, asking for pictures, while I was doing a little activation lift.”

Bringing happiness across the Americas

As much as the tour is about preparing Miami for the 2025 season, it also allows Messi’s presence to spread across the Americas while the club gets more competitive and heated environments than your typical preseason.

Lionel Messi and Inter Miami CF opened their preseason in LAs Vegas against Club America / David Gonzales-Imagn Images

With sold-out crowds at every stop, the Concacaf and Conmebol opponents often don’t treat it like a preseason match. Tackles fly, challenges are gritty, and fans sometimes get in on the physical play.

“Everybody tries to go hard at Messi because they want to be the person that tackled Lionel Messi,” Gressel quipped of a particularly physical game in Panama. “Even in those types of friendly games, it's not okay when somebody goes after you like that. And then you, you know, you saw how it transpired, and guys come to protect him rightfully so.”

Despite Messi’s bodyguard, Yassine Cheuko, having to step in multiple times, the club generally keeps the Argentine No. 10 protected, and the entire team much more sheltered than other MLS clubs, which don’t have to worry about fans as much in their preseasons.

Mascherano’s first test

Julian Gressel says he's enjoying the first preseason under Javier Mascherano / Courtesy of Inter Miami CF

As much as the former Barcelona stars on the pitch are critical to the team’s public image and on-field success, it’s also been a learning path for new head coach Javier Mascherano, who is taking on his first professional managerial job.

After not starting in some of Miami’s biggest games down the stretch in 2024, Gressel has also experienced a formative preseason, developing his role in the side as the Herons look for success in MLS, the playoffs, and the FIFA Club World Cup.

“He's obviously still young and somewhat experienced, but at the same time, he's been really good, and honestly, the whole staff has been,” Gressel said. “They're also very open to the American culture and American players on the team... They’ve been very good in terms of coming in, adapting to a new culture, and just being good people, and Mascherano himself has good ideas and a good way to play, and it's really interesting to work under him.”

While Mascherano's experience under Gerardo “Tata” Martino in 2024 will be notably different from Miami's, it’s a step towards continued success that makes Messi comfortable.

As for how things are going on the training ground and what language they’re speaking? It’s still Spanish, but Messi continues to take English lessons after speaking to Gressel in English at times last season.

“I don't have any firsthand knowledge as of yesterday of how good his English is, but I would assume it is improving. Maybe not at the quickest rate possible, but it's certainly getting better slowly.

Inter Miami kick off the 2025 MLS season on Feb. 22 against New York City FC after opening Concacaf Champions Cup play against Sporting Kansas City on Feb. 18.