<br><div><aside aria-label="advertisement" class="gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__bv"/><aside aria-label="advertisement" class="gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__bvd gnt_x__h"/><aside class="gnt_em gnt_em__fp gnt_em_vp__tp gnt_em__el" aria-label="Video - Lionel Messi and Inter Miami begin preseason preparations"><div class="gnt_em_vp_w" data-g-r="vp_tp" data-c-vt="teal" data-t-pl="teal-hero"><button class="gnt_em_vp_a gnt_em_vp__tp_a" data-g-r="vp_ap vp_tg" data-c-vpattrs="{"muted":true,"bContent":false,"an":"usatoday","pn":"USA TODAY","vidNum":1,"docking":true,"t0060":1,"cut":1}" data-c-vpdata="{"adsEnabled":true,"awsPath":"news","byline":"SNTV","canonicalURL":"","contentSourceCode":"VIDE","credit":"SNTV","duration":155000,"headline":"Lionel Messi and Inter Miami begin preseason preparations","hlsURL":"https://hlsmedia.gannett-cdn.com/authoring/videos/videoelephant/renditions/77696969007/981e8b56-9832-4d8d-aa64-6543257ba843/480p_30fps,720p_30fps,1080p_30fps,master.m3u8?subtitles=77696969007","id":"77696969007","image":{"opto":true,"url":"/gcdn/authoring/videos/videoelephant/thumbnails/77696969007.jpg"},"keywords":"Soccer,MLS,Do Not Syndicate","mp4URL":"https://www.gannett-cdn.com/authoring/videos/videoelephant/renditions/77696969007/981e8b56-9832-4d8d-aa64-6543257ba843/1080p_30fps.mp4","origin":"Video Elephant","pageURL":{"long":"https://www.usatoday.com/videos/news/2025/01/14/lionel-messi-and-inter-miami-begin-preseason-preparations/77696969007/"},"promoBrief":"Soccer Inter Miami Traning","propertyName":"USATODAY","series":"","ssts":{"section":"news","subsection":"","topic":"","subtopic":""},"tags":[{"id":"84ca95ef-94ac-4d9e-b8f2-581d098df78e","name":"Soccer"},{"id":"4b91d0cf-7c6d-4637-88fe-76979c2946a8","name":"MLS"},{"id":"0d7241c1-c262-4ccf-82ea-4c1efacfd6dd","name":"Do Not Syndicate"}],"title":"Lionel Messi and Inter Miami begin preseason preparations","url":"/videos/news/2025/01/14/lionel-messi-and-inter-miami-begin-preseason-preparations/77696969007/"}" aria-label="Play video"><img alt="" class="gnt_em_vp_img" src="https://www.usatoday.com/gcdn/authoring/authoring-images/2025/01/29/USAT/78032487007-usatsi-25225261.jpg?crop=4354,2450,x0,y221&width=660&height=371&format=pjpg&auto=webp" data-g-r="vp_po" fetchpriority="high" elementtiming="ar-lead-image" decoding="async"/><svg class="gnt_em_vp_svg"><use xlink:href="#gnt_svg_video_play"/></svg></button></div></aside><p class="gnt_ar_b_p"><a target="_blank" href="http://www.usatoday.com/sports/soccer/lionel-messi/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-t-l=":b|e|k|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a">Lionel Messi</a> took off <a target="_blank" href="https://sportsdata.usatoday.com/soccer/mls/team/14880?season=2025" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-t-l=":b|e|k|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a">Inter Miami</a>’s captain armband and clapped toward fans in a packed stadium after playing 72 minutes during a preseason game in Peru on Wednesday night.</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">Messi failed to score, but Inter Miami beat Universitario – Peru’s back-to-back champions – with a 5-4 edge in penalty kicks after a scoreless draw in regulation at Estadio Monumental in Lima, Peru.</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">Inter Miami’s Julian Gressel, Santi Morales, David Ruiz, Benjamin Cremaschi and Yannick Bright all scored, while Jairo Vélez was the only Universitario player to miss in the penalty round.</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">Still, the match was centered around Messi’s presence deeply felt by Peruvian fans during Inter Miami’s preseason stop in the South American country.</p><aside aria-label="advertisement" class="gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al"/><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">Messi was featured on a local newspaper with the headline “Dios está in Peru” or “God is here in Peru” before the club arrived in Lima. Inter Miami’s team bus was surrounded by fans, with Messi sitting and waving to fans, as they slowly drove through the city on Tuesday night.</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">Messi was aggressive in Wednesday’s match, getting downhill on several opportunities toward the net. He even lined up for two free kicks in the game. But Messi was unable to find the back of the net.</p><aside aria-label="advertisement" class="gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al"/><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">Messi was also aggressively defended by Universitario, hitting the deck several times and complaining to referees for foul calls. But he bounced back up and got back into the action seamlessly.</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">More important, Messi appears in prime shape and ready for the grind of a busy 2025 where...</p></div> <style> .wrapper { text-align: center; } </style> <div class="wrapper"> <a class="button" href ="https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mls/2025/01/29/messi-in-peru-inter-miami-vs-universitario-time-tv-free-stream-link/78031668007/">Read more <span>➤</span></a> </div>
