Jon Arnold - @ArnoldcommaJon
Marcelo Basteiro pulled up his car at 1 pm Sunday to make sure he would be in the front row of the parking lot. He unpacked his table, his beverages, his chairs and set up shop.
Never mind that the gates of DRV PNK Stadium didn’t open until 6 p.m. or that he ended up having to wait even longer to catch a glimpse of the man everyone was there to see, Lionel Messi, because of a deafening thunderstorm that caused a weather delay for Sunday’s unveiling event.
An Argentine who has been living in Miami for four years, Basteiro has been following Inter Miami CF with his son but never made it to the stadium. Messi’s arrival changes everything.
“I saw him live when he came with the Argentina national team, but the personality Messi has, the way he is, how he’s humble with the fans and the big star he is made me come out,” Basteiro said. “I’m coming again when they play Cruz Azul on Friday. I’ve already got my tickets. There will be a before and after for Inter".
“As an Argentine, I never have been so close. In Argentina, he was in Spain, so seeing him here 20 miles from my house is a dream come true.”
While Basterio enjoyed his first trip to DRV PNK, Anthony Hall was in familiar territory. An Inter Miami season ticket holder, he’s long supported soccer in South Florida, also holding season tickets for the Miami Fusion and other area teams before Inter Miami came into the league.
Hall said he welcomes new fans like Basteiro and has been blown away by the reaction to the Messi signing.
“The last two weeks have been crazy. This is the biggest outpouring I’ve ever seen for any team in the Miami or Fort Lauderdale area,” Hall said.
Messi’s celebrity and skills are such that he is able to energize both long-time fans and relatively new converts, plus those who are in between.
Orly Villa was standing under the bleachers with her son and daughter during the delay and described her son as “a Messi mega-fan” who had been hoping for more than a year to take a trip to see his idol. Now, Messi is playing at the same club where they have relatives playing in academy system and have supported for a few years.
“It’s the best thing that could’ve happened to the city. We’re super happy,” Vila said. “I think it’ll change the history of soccer in the United States having the best player in the world here.”
Miguel Barrera, a Peruvian who has lived in Miami for 25 years, stood listening to some impromptu live music in the parking lot. A keytar player plugged in and a singer started belting out rock en Español classics after sipping from a makeshift glass of Coke and fernet that was simply the bottom half of a two liter. Barrera said he always went back and forth when it came to the debate about the best player in the world, but Messi’s World Cup win put him over the top.
Now, he’s stunned to see that player wearing the pink shirt of the team he’s followed for a year and a half and believes it will benefit not just Inter Miami but the city as a whole.
“This is the best thing that can happen to South Florida. It’s incredible the best player in the world is here, going to the supermarket, eating at a restaurant near here,” he said. “It’s incredible. It helps the economy because everything related to Messi is selling, tourists are going to come because people from all over the world want to come see him.”
Barrera was definitely the odd man out Sunday, wearing a Josef Martinez jersey rather than some form of Messi shirt: the blue-and-white stripes of Argentina, various takes on the Miami shirt Messi still is yet to wear in a game, and shirts from previous club stops.
With the presentation and concert wrapped up, fans are looking forward to Messi’s first training session with the club and his first game, Friday’s Leagues Cup curtain-raiser against Liga MX grande Cruz Azul.
“That’s going to be big because Cruz Azul has a big following, even here, and Liga MX has a big following. To bring one of their top teams, it’s a good way for Messi to start out,” Hall said.
Vila agrees. “Honestly, we’re super excited about the Cruz Azul game,” she said. “Everything is getting more exciting - not just Messi, but all the changes they’re making, bringing Sergio Busquets, the new manager (Tata Martino). This isn’t stopping. It’s a new story.”
The crowd of nearly 20,000 that will flock to DRV PNK Stadium to see the debut match will be a mix of long-standing fans and those curious about Messi. By the end of the journey, Inter hopes it’s celebrating a Leagues Cup win and has turned those new faces into familiar friends.
