Inter Miami Tops Columbus Crew Before Record-Breaking Crowd in Cleveland
Inter Miami, Messi, and a Record Crowd: A Night that Rewrote the MLS Playbook
The atmosphere inside Cleveland’s Huntington Bank Field was electric long before kickoff—even though neither home nor visiting team called the city their own. A whopping 60,614 fans streamed in, smashing the Columbus Crew’s previous attendance record and turning a regular season MLS match into a spectacle that felt more like a championship final. The magnet behind this football frenzy? None other than Lionel Messi. His mere presence set off a ticket-buying spree, forcing the Crew to relocate this top-billed clash from their usual home to Cleveland’s largest stadium. It marked the second time in just two weeks that a match against Inter Miami shattered attendance numbers, underscoring how Messi’s move has completely reshaped the American soccer landscape.
If you were hoping for fireworks, the match had its moments. Inter Miami’s Benjamin Cremaschi etched himself into the headlines with a beautifully timed diving header in the 30th minute. He only needed one quick chance to make it count, and that was enough to seal a nail-biting 1-0 victory for Miami. But the action didn’t stop there. Messi, forever the center of attention, played to the crowd and nearly doubled Miami’s lead with a strike that had the stadium holding their breath. The finishing touch just wasn’t there, but that didn’t dampen the sea of pink and black shirts in the stands that roared for every Messi touch.
Oscar Ustari’s Heroics and Inter Miami’s Unbeaten Surge
It’s easy to overlook the defensive grit Miami showed while all eyes were on the star attackers. Goalkeeper Oscar Ustari was the silent wall, pulling off three clutch saves after halftime to maintain the clean sheet and keep Inter Miami’s unbeaten momentum surging. They now sit pretty at the top of the Eastern Conference with a 5-0-3 record, firmly becoming the team to beat this MLS season. Since Messi’s arrival in 2023, Inter Miami has brought in crowds of over 60,000 an eyebrow-raising nine times—a figure unheard of in previous league history. For Columbus, the night was bittersweet. The Crew saw their own unbeaten streak snuffed out, dropping them to 5-1-3. Still, they’ll remember the roaring crowd and intensity more than the solitary goal that split the teams.
It’s not just the numbers that tell the story, though. From first-time MLS fans snapping photos of Messi to seasoned Crew supporters in disbelief at the sea of people, the mammoth turnout spoke to a sport on the rise. The field in Cleveland may have been unfamiliar, but for one night, it was the center of the American soccer world—and a fresh chapter in the storied journey of both Inter Miami and the Crew.