Lionel Messi kicks off first Major League Soccer game in Miami

After weeks of anticipation, superstar Lionel Messi is officially part of Major League Soccer. In front of a sold-out home crowd, he is debuting Friday for Inter-Miami. The spotlight is on the team and the entire MLS to see if he can capitalize on the star power Messi brings on and off the field. CBS News' Christian Benavides joins us now from Miami. So Christian, what are you hearing from the fans outside the stadium? Well Catherine, if it looks like I'm a little sweaty right now, it's because we've been walking around like madmen just speaking to fans out here in the Florida heat and the energy is almost hotter than that, that excessive heat. We're here in Florida, there is a lot of heat coming from the Miami fan base. So many people that I spoke to came all the way from different parts of the world. There was one family that I spoke to that came all the way from Argentina just to watch Messi play here. Now some of the folks that I've spoken to that are here locally are just hoping that this will be transformational for Major League Soccer. As I walked around, I saw people just sort of barbecuing, talking to each other, people banging drums because there is just so much excitement to have a figure like Messi here. It's just truly incredible, not just for the sport, but for South Florida in general. Let me tell you, living here in South Florida, driving through I-95, there are signs, there are billboards. There's one billboard that says Bienvenido 10, meaning welcome number 10 from public supermarket. He was spotted at the supermarket and him shopping with his family and it's just sort of been Messi mania truly here all throughout South Florida. Well, it's all great to hear. Christian Benavides in Miami, thank you. For more, let's bring in Jeff Reuter. He's a staff writer for The Athletic and covers soccer here in the U.S. So Jeff, why was Miami the right choice? Yeah, for Lionel Messi, once he won the World Cup in December, there just was very little left for him to achieve on the field. He's won Champions Leagues. He won La Liga in Spain with FC Barcelona. He conquered France with Paris Saint-Germain. And so the question wasn't so much, what was the best way to utilize his talents on the field? He'd done again, everything he could in his advancing years. It's more about a legacy play and it goes beyond the money. Yes, there's a lot of money involved, especially when you consider compensation, which will come through perks through Adidas and Apple, two partners, a major league soccer. But the idea here is that major league soccer now will have two eras forevermore. There's the before Lionel Messi and the after Messi era. And that is something which owner Jorge Moss emphasized in negotiations with Lionel Messi's father and agent, Jorge Messi. So the idea here is that if soccer in the United States of America is going to have this spike in popularity and interest that has been long anticipated ever since the 2026 Men's World Cup was awarded to the United States, having arguably the greatest player in the sport's can only help that cause and ultimately ties that growth to Lionel Messi's legacy. So let's take that question of a legacy a step further. Can he bring home a major victory for his new team? They've made it very difficult for him, certainly for this first season. Inter Miami currently is two thirds of the way through its season and they're in last place in major league soccer. It's a very forgiving format where nine teams from each conference do advance with eighth and ninth and doing a play in round similar to the National Basketball Association. However, will they make it this year? They've made it very difficult. I would be very surprised if they make the postseason. They'll likely need to win nine, 10 of their last 12 games to achieve that. However, they are in the semifinal of a cup competition called the U.S. Open Cup, which is one of the longest running open competitions, which involves every soccer club in the United States, seemingly whether they're professional and a few amateurs as well. They're one of the final four. They're going to be facing off against FC Cincinnati, which is one of the best teams in major league soccer this season. Difficult task, but when they're two wins away from winning a trophy, I think that's a lot easier to manage than winning nine or 10 out of your final 12. So there is every opportunity for them to win the U.S. Open Cup. So big picture and you touched on it earlier. What does Messi bring to the to the U.S. League overall? I think overall, it just gives that sort of credence. Americans like watching the best at sports. There's a reason that the NHL, Major League Baseball, the NBA and the NFL have long been seen as the big four. The best players in the world by and large will be playing in this league. And that just hasn't been the case for Major League Soccer. Major League Soccer at this stage is somewhere between the 12th and 20th, 20th best league in the world as you're looking at various metrics. And so the idea of having not just a great player, there are plenty of great players in Major League Soccer, but an all time icon of the sport playing in the United States. That's something that gets the casual sports fan interested. And so the idea here is that whether he's playing in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, which is where he'll be playing the majority of his games for these first year and a half, at least, or he's touring the country, there's at least that element of intrigue of we are seeing an iconic generational talent in this league. And that's a huge advantage for Major League Soccer.