Lionel Messi will play in Canada twice in 2025 — but not in Vancouver

Lionel Messi is scheduled to trek to Canada once again — but he’ll be missing a key city for a second year in a row.

Today, Major League Soccer dropped its 2025 schedule, with all eyes on Messi’s Inter Miami and where they’ll play this upcoming season.

And while he’ll be visiting two Canadian cities this year, Messi and his teammates will not be making the trip to Vancouver’s BC Place.

Miami will visit Montreal on July 5 and head to Toronto on September 27. Toronto will also visit Miami on April 6, while Montreal will be there on May 28.

Assuming he plays, the two cities will remain the only Canadian spots Messi has played in as a pro. The winner of the 2024 MLS MVP, Messi saw his playoff run end earlier than expected when the first-place squad was bounced in the first round of the postseason by Atlanta United.

Miami visited Vancouver last May, but it was announced a few days prior to the match that Messi and high-profile teammates Luis Suarez and Sergio Busquets would not be participating in the contest.

“We understand they will not make this trip. Unfortunately, we have no control over who plays for our opponent, and it was important for us to communicate to our fans as soon as possible,“ said Whitecaps FC CEO Axel Schuster in a statement at the time.

The Whitecaps will not be having a road trip to Miami, either.

Ticket details for Messi’s two matches in Canada will be announced at a later date, with neither club offering single-game ticket info as of press time. Last year, all three Canadian clubs offered Inter Miami tickets as part of a four-game flex pack, which helped add to the ire of those who bought the ticket packages in hopes of seeing the 37-year-old Argentinian star.

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