Messi's 100th Inter Miami goal wins the Campeones Cup

Inter Miami beat Cruz Azul 2-0 at Nu Stadium on Wednesday night to win the Campeones Cup, and the goal that opened the scoring was Lionel Messi's 100th for the club. 12

Messi headed in a Luis Suárez cross in the 24th minute. Casemiro headed in a Messi corner in the 81st. The match was Cristian "Kily" González's first in charge, and he finished it with a trophy. MLS named Messi the Campeones Cup Superior Player of the Match. 34

Cruz Azul came in as the Campeón de Campeones winners of Liga MX, and they had slightly more of the ball, 52% to 48%. 1 Their first chance arrived in the sixth minute, when Dayne St. Clair saved from José Paradela. 1

Messi's header came from a familiar combination: Suárez crossed from the right and Messi met the ball in the middle of the box. 3 Minutes later Suárez tried a chip that Willer Ditta cleared off the line, and early in the second half Messi ran onto another Suárez pass and finished, only for the goal to be ruled out for offside. 35

Cruz Azul's best spell produced a header from Gabriel Fernández that hit the post, with Casemiro blocking Paradela's follow-up. 3 The second goal then arrived from a corner: Messi swung the ball in from the left in the 81st minute and Casemiro headed past Kevin Mier for his fourth goal in five matches, all of them headers. 14 St. Clair kept Cruz Azul out in stoppage time with a save from a free kick. 1

Messi reached 100 goals for Inter Miami in his 115th appearance across all competitions. That century arrived faster than either of the other two he has scored in his career: 188 games for Barcelona and 174 for Argentina. 4

The goals are spread unevenly across his four seasons in Florida: 11 in 2023 after his mid-season arrival, 23 in 2024, 43 in 2025 and 23 so far in 2026. 6 By competition the breakdown reads 76 in MLS, 14 in the Leagues Cup, eight in the Concacaf Champions Cup, one at the Club World Cup and now one in the Campeones Cup. 4

His first goal for Inter Miami also came against Cruz Azul, a stoppage-time free kick in a 2-1 win in his debut in July 2023. 4 His career total for club and country now stands at 929 goals, and he leads MLS this season with 19 goals in 22 games. 4

Inter Miami have won something in every season since Messi joined: the Leagues Cup in 2023, the Supporters' Shield in 2024, MLS Cup in 2025 and the Campeones Cup now. 3 The trophy is also the club's first at Nu Stadium, which opened in April with a capacity of 26,700. 7

MLS counted the Campeones Cup as the 48th trophy of Messi's career for club and country, extending a record no other player holds. 8 The result also levelled the all-time Campeones Cup series between MLS and Liga MX at four wins each. 3

Messi is on the 30-player shortlist for the 2026 Ballon d'Or, his 17th nomination for the award, and the winner will be announced in London on Oct. 26. 59

Co-owner David Beckham used the night to argue for him. "He deserves to be considered for the Ballon d'Or. In my opinion, he should win it," Beckham said on Apple TV. "There's no one at 39 that's doing that, and doing it at that level." 5

González, who played alongside Messi for Argentina and now coaches him, said: "Lionel is No. 1. There's no one like him and I have no doubts that he should get the Ballon [d'Or]," he said. 9 Managing owner Jorge Mas praised the mood around the squad: "I think we saw vintage Messi tonight," he said. 7

Rodrigo De Paul, Messi's teammate for Inter Miami and Argentina, said: "It's become a normality [for Messi] but it isn't." "We have to enjoy him, admire him, see him with the love that he plays each game." 4 Casemiro, who headed in the second goal, said: "We have to enjoy this because we don't know how long we'll have it." 5

Postgame video showed Messi pointing his finger at MLS commissioner Don Garber while speaking with him after the match, more than once, and another clip showed the two of them pointing at each other. MLS declined to comment and Inter Miami did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 1011

Miami stay home for league play, and Messi's Argentina send-off window opens on Sept. 30. San Diego arrive ninth in the Western Conference on 30 points and have lost three in a row, including a 5-0 home defeat to the Philadelphia Union. 12 Kickoff times for the Argentina friendlies have not been announced, so those rows carry the local date.