Lionel Messi played in his share of unique environments as one of the best footballers in the world.
He adds another Saturday when the Argentine superstar visits the DAWG Pound.
Instead of Cleveland Browns fans barking against the opponents of the stands in the East end area, the Columbus Crew supporters will take control of the space on Saturday when Columbus welcomes Inter Miami.
The crew had the opportunity to hold a match in Cleveland since the Haslam sports group resumed the franchise in 2019. The haslams also have the Browns.
“It is a unique moment with Messi where we can fill the building and ensure that the first experience of the northeast of Ohio with the crew of Columbus is in a crowded house,” said Josh Glessing, head of the Haslam group’s strategy development who is also president of the team’s commercial operations.
It will be the 11th match in MLS that Messi played in an NFL stadium since his arrival in Miami in 2023 after the Captain of Argentina as the 2022 World Cup. This is the second time that a club has moved to a greater installation. Previous matches – nine regular season and a playoff series – have an average of 61,507 fans.
Last year, Sporting Kansas City attracted 72,610 when they played Inter Miami at the Arrowhead stadium instead of their land, which has a capacity of 18,467.
Atlanta United, Charlotte FC, The Chicago Fire and New England Revolution play in the NFL facilities. Last Sunday, the aimless draw on the Soldier Field of Chicago had a crowd of 62,358, a record in a single match for the fire.
The crew expects to establish a record in a single match, exceeding the 31,550 he attracted for a 1996 match at the Ohio stadium against the New York-New Jersey Metrostars.
“So that Miami moves around the Major League Soccer and so that we can take this game in the big stadiums and sell them, brings the impact he has on the major football league and on sport. But there is also an inherited exciting impact that I do not think that many people have still achieved,” said the executive vice-president, the executive vice-president of MLS.
However, not everyone is satisfied with the move. The group of crew supporters, The Nordecke, announced Thursday that it would not provide equipment or its traditional Capos at the head of the songs for the game, having initially expressed their disappointment with the decision to play in Cleveland during its announcement in December.
Cleveland and Northeast Ohio have their own football history. The force of the large large indoor football league was one of the most contributed teams at the height of the League in the 1980s.
Recently, the region has been a fertile land for the youth and club teams. The University of Akron won the male football title of the NCAA of Division I in 2010, was a finalist in 2018 and reached the final of the College Cup four times.
The ZIPs sent many players to MLS, including the field of the crew Darlington Nagbe.
Cleveland was in the running for an NWSL expansion team. After these efforts failed, a local group announced this week its plans to align a club in WPSL Pro, a division II and a feeder league for NWSL.
Huntington Bank Field welcomed American and women’s national teams from the American national team, including two doubles of the Gold Cup in Concacaf.
Columbus is one of the original members of Major League Soccer, but ended up with fans of Ohio since FC Cincinnati began playing in 2016 and joined MLS three years later.
“We believe that it has a real half-life with the crew of Columbus. If we can do things well, we can create new fans in Cleveland,” said Glissing. “We hope that these people will go to Columbus in the future to dialogue with the crew because they were exposed to something new for the first time.”
Besides the Messi fanfare, it is a match between the only two undefeated MLS teams. The crew (5-0-3) led the Eastern Conference with 18 points while Idé Miami (4-0-3) played a match less and is reflected in fourth place with 15 points.
Messi has scored three goals and two assists in four MLS games this season. The midfielder of the Sean Zawadzki crew, who grew up in Olmsted Falls, is delighted to play in front of fans of the hometown.
“For me, it means a lot,” said Zawadzki. “It’s a place where I grew up, supporting the Browns and other Cleveland teams. So being there, closer to family and friends is obviously a large part for me. So, I really can’t wait for the game.”
Information from the Associated Press and Lizzy Becherano of ESPN was used in this report.
