Tickets to see Lionel Messi’s MLS debut going for as much as $35,000

A ball flies past as Lionel Messi participates in a training session for Inter Miami MLS soccer team Tuesday, July 18, 2023, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)AP

Lionel Messi is expected to make his Inter Miami and MLS debut on Friday, and if you want to watch to him in person, you may have to take out a hefty loan.

Tickets for his first scheduled match on Friday are selling for as much as $35,000 each, according to Vivid Seats. That’s one of the most expensive ticket prices ever recorded for a MLS team. A single ticket was as much as $110,000 earlier in the week, but apparently the frenzy has slowed.

Inter Miami will take on Cruz Azul, a club that competes in Mexico’s Liga MX at Inter Miami’s DRV PNK Stadium.

Fans won’t have to mortgage their homes to see Messi’s Inter Miami debut, tickets as low as $271 each are available through Vivid Seats.

Inter Miami’s first MLS regular season game with Messi will be a home game against Charlotte FC. Prices for those tickets range between $239 and $9,356 on Vivid Seats.

The club formally introduced the Argentine superstar in an elaborate event that was held in a downpour Saturday. The event was delayed two hours because of thunderstorms and heavy rain.

Messi signed with Inter Miami in a deal reported to be worth between $50 to $60 million per year. His deal includes an option for part-ownership of the club and a cut of the revenue from new subscribers to Apple TV’s MLS Season Pass streaming service, according to multiple reports.

Messi will see familiar faces in the Inter Miami locker room. The club has announced the signing of midfielder Sergio Busquets, Messi’s longtime teammate at Barcelona. The club is reportedly close to signing left-back Jordi Alba, another teammate of Messi at Barcelona. Inter Miami is also reportedly in negotiations for striker Luis Suarez, yet another teammate of Messi’s at Barcelona.

Messi, 36, is one of the greatest players in the sport’s history. He has won the prestigious Ballon d’Or award (the world’s best player) seven times. He led his home country of Argentina to a World Cup championship in 2022. Messi played for Barcelona for the majority of his career, where he led the club to four UEFA Champions League titles.