Inter Miami’s 2023 MLS Cup Odds Soaring Due To Messi’s Impact

The honeymoon period between Lionel Messi and Inter Miami has gotten off to a beautiful start. Messi’s impact has been instantaneous in Major League Soccer. The former Barcelona star has already scored three goals in just two starts. Consequently, Inter Miami’s 2023 MLS Cup odds have risen incredibly from +4400 to +1800 at BetUS.

Going back to before Messi signed with Inter Miami, they had +20000 odds to win the MLS Cup in early June. This was in early June, so we have seen unprecedented odds shift during a short timeframe. What does this say about Messi and Major League Soccer?

First, it shows how talented of a player Messi still is at 36 years old. He is on the back nine of his career, but Messi is still one of the most feared soccer players in the world. Fresh off winning the World Cup with Argentina, Messi has accomplished everything that he set out to achieve in his career.

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Messi Toying With Inferior Competition

Now, Messi has decided to have fun on his retirement tour in Miami following the World Cup win. This brings us to our second point: it’s quite clear that the talent over here is not what he played against in Europe. It has been only two games, but Messi was doing whatever he wanted against Cruz Azul of Liga MX and Atlanta United.

Messi looks like a professional playing against high schoolers. All of that being said, Messi is still arguably the best in the world. Naturally, his skills are going to look above the rest against a Liga MX and MLS club.

GO OFF, LEO MESSI.

A 20-minute brace for @InterMiamiCF's star man. pic.twitter.com/vzrDobOFRc

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) July 26, 2023

Additionally, Atlanta United isn’t the best MLS club. There will be tougher challenges ahead for Messi and Inter Miami. Every player, even Messi, will have bad games. Do not expect Messi to continue playing at this pace.

Scoring an average of one goal per match is unrealistic. Nevertheless, two goals against his first MLS opponent is not a bad debut. In front of a slew of celebrities and star-struck fans, Messi buried Atlanta United for a 4-0 win at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale.

Messi Creating Giant Imprint on Major League Soccer

There hasn’t been this much hype surrounding Major League Soccer in as long as we can recall. David Beckham arrived in the US to great fanfare in 2007. He won two MLS Cups in his time with the LA Galaxy, before going back to Europe after the 2012 season.

While Beckham’s US tour was a success, it did not have the same pizazz as Messi has had in just two games. The co-owner of Inter Miami did a lot of good to bring attention to Major League Soccer, but Messi should bring a much larger spotlight to the North American league.

LeBron is back in Miami for Messi’s debut 🌴

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) July 21, 2023

Any player that can bring more legitimacy to the league is good for the game’s future. Since Beckham’s departure from MLS as a player, the league has continued to see a significant uptick in interest. Last year, the 2022 MLS Cup was the most-viewed Major League Soccer event since 1997.

Messi’s presence should elevate the league to new viewership highs in 2023-24. Every Inter Miami road game is going to be treated like a must-see sporting event in opposing cities. Soccer fans that aren’t interested in the MLS product, will at least want to check out a match featuring Messi.

Inter Miami Well Behind In Eastern Conference

Inter Miami has seen a seismic-sized rise in their MLS Cup odds over the last two months. It is unbelievable that Inter Miami had +20000 odds before Messi came to an agreement with the club. Currently, Inter Miami has the seventh-best odds to win the MLS Cup at BetUS despite a record of 5-3-14.

94TH-MINUTE WINNER.

OFF A FREE KICK.

ON HIS DEBUT.

LEO MESSI 👑

— B/R Football (@brfootball) July 22, 2023

Cincinnati leads the Eastern Conference at 15-6-2 and 51 points. That puts Inter Miami 33 points behind Cincinnati. They are trailing Toronto FC by a point, but should surpass them shortly.

For reference, Toronto FC, who is ahead of Inter Miami in the standings, has +75000 odds to win the 2023 MLS Cup. Colorado of the Western Conference is the other club in MLS to have just one more point than Inter Miami.

They have one more point, but Colorado is tied with Toronto for the worst MLS Cup odds in the league at +75000. Moreover, even crazier is the fact that Inter Miami has better odds to win the 2023 title than the two clubs who are currently in the Eastern Conference Wild Card spots, Chicago and D.C. United.