‘The Last Dance’? Messi facing Ronaldo on Inter Miami visit to the Middle East
The latest, and possibly last, chapter of the Lionel Messi vs. Cristiano Ronaldo rivalry will unfold in Saudi Arabia on Feb. 1 as Inter Miami announced Monday night that it will play a pair of games against top Saudi teams in the Riyadh Season Cup as part of the club’s first international tour.
Inter Miami will play Al-Hilal at the Kingdom Arena on Jan. 29 at 1 p.m. Eastern and, three days later on Feb. 1, will play Ronaldo’s Al Nassr FC team.
Al-Hilal has won 66 titles and sits atop the table in league play. The team is coached by former Sporting CP player and manager Jorge Jesus, and boasts stars such as Neymar (who is injured and unavailable), Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Rúben Neves, Aleksandar Mitrovic, Kalidou Koulibaly and Malcom.
Al Nassr is in second place in the Saudi Pro League standings behind Al-Hilal, and Ronaldo is the league’s leading goal scorer this season.
The team, coached by Portuguese manager Luís Castro, also features Sadio Mané and Aymeric Laporte.
After playing in Saudi Arabia, Inter Miami will travel to Hong Kong for a Feb. 4 game against a Hong Kong all-star team. That game was announced last week.
Miami will kick off its preseason Jan. 19 against the El Salvador national team in San Salvador. MLS preseason camp opens Jan. 10.
“This is another major
opportunity to create lasting relationships with passionate fans,” said Xavier Asensi, Inter Miami chief business officer. “We are excited to connect with new supporters in Saudi Arabia, and also hope people all over the world will be tuning in to see a pair of dream matches like these.”
Inter Miami sporting director Chris Henderson said: “These matches will offer important tests for our team, which will benefit us as we approach the new season.
“We’re excited for our group to get the chance to go up against teams with as much quality as AlHilal and Al Nassr.”
Saudi promoters had already announced the Inter Miami vs. Al Nassr game a few weeks ago and billed it as “The Last Dance.”
Messi is 36 and Ronaldo is 38, so it will likely be the last time they face each other. Inter Miami initially denied the Saudi report, saying it was premature, but on Monday confirmed the Saudi tour.
The Messi-Ronaldo rivalry is one of the greatest in sports history, and arguments continue as to who is the better player. From 2008 to 2017, one or the other won the Ballon d’Or trophy as world’s top player. Ronaldo has 612 million Instagram followers and Messi has 493 million.
Messi and Ronaldo have faced each other 35 times, with Messi claiming 16 wins to 10 by Ronaldo, withi nine ties. In those 35 matches, Messi has 21 goals and 12 assists, while Ronaldo has 20 goals and one assist.
Messi last played against Ronaldo in January 2023, when Paris Saint-Germain played against the Saudi All-Stars. Both players scored.
Tickets for the Saudi matches can be reserved through the WeBook app. Further information, including broadcast details, will be released later.
WE ARE EXCITED TO CONNECT WITH NEW SUPPORTERS IN SAUDI ARABIA, AND ... HOPE PEOPLE ALL OVER THE WORLD WILL BE TUNING IN TO SEE A PAIR OF DREAM MATCHES LIKE THESE. Xavier Asensi, Inter Miami chief business officer