Lionel Messi tackled by pitch invader in chaotic friendly in Puerto Rico | MLS
Lionel Messi was briefly tackled to the ground by a pitch invader and security guard during a midweek early-season friendly Thursday night in Bayamón, Puerto Rico.
Inter Miami was filling a make-up date for a postponed friendly against Ecuadorian club Independiente del Valle, originally scheduled for February 13. The original date was canceled after Messi felt hamstring discomfort during the previous tune-up exhibition at Ecuadorian club Barcelona SC. Inter Miami cited coordination with “the event promoter and the government of Puerto Rico” in determining the Feb. 26 makeup date — five days after Miami opened the 2026 MLS season in Los Angeles, losing 3-0 to Son Heung-min’s LAFC.
Miami will resume the young MLS regular season less than 72 hours after Thursday’s friendly, visiting intrastate rival Orlando City on Sunday evening.
The match itself was a curious spectacle for reasons other than odd timing. Kickoff was delayed an hour, according to on-field reports, due to uniform issues; Ultimately, both Independiente del Valle and Miami wore predominantly black kits, making the teams difficult to tell apart from a distance.
In front of a sold-out crowd of 12,500 at the Estadio Juan Ramón Loubriel, Miami coach Javier Mascherano began the game with a lineup mostly made up of players who had not started the season opener in Los Angeles, but assured the media before the match that his entire team could feature. Messi came on at halftime, eventually scoring a penalty in a 2-1 victory.
In the 88th minute, fans rushed onto the field behind the Miami goal, with a pitch invader pushing past Rodrigo De Paul before converging on Messi. A security guard forced the fan to run in front of the Argentine, but two other young fans (one wearing a Barcelona jersey, the other a Miami jersey) followed suit, asking for a selfie and an autograph.
Eventually, the initial invader, now shirtless, pushed past the security guard and latched onto Messi, wrapping his arms around his waist. The security guard then tackled the fan to the ground, taking Messi with him inside the center circle. A perplexed Messi quickly got up, leaving unscathed.
None of his Miami teammates came to intervene on behalf of their captain during this chaotic sequence and its aftermath. Eventually, an opposing player (Carlos González, a Paraguayan striker) approached Messi and wrapped his arm around him for safety and the team of officials sorted through another handful of hurrying fans.
Like Miami, Independiente also opened their campaign last weekend with a 2-0 LigaPro win against Guayaquil City. They return to competitive play on Monday, away to Manta FC.
