New York Red Bulls v Inter Miami CF

The former USMNT players addressed the Argentine’s controversial absence from the 2025 MLS All-Star Game

New York Red Bulls v Inter Miami CF

WHAT ALEXI LALAS SAID

Former U.S. international Alexi Lalas addressed Lionel Messi's absence from the 2025 MLS All-Star Game, describing it as an uncomfortable situation for the league. Lalas emphasized that the All-Star Game is a well-known priority for MLS.

“Any team, including the MLS All Star team in this case, would want Messi playing in it… so this puts MLS in this awkward situation of having their marquee player not playing in their marquee game, and by contract violation," Lalas said on his State of the Union podcast. “Messi, we all know more than any player in Major League Soccer history has incredible leverage. And you signed the contract. If you did not like the contract at the time, you should have changed it - with that leverage if you could. And if you can't, then don't sign the contract if you're not going to live up to it.”

The analyst said that, despite Messi's incredible efforts on the pitch, he deserves criticism for his ASG no-show.

“This is a contractual obligation, and MLS and Inter Miami are paying you a boatload of money, and Apple for that matter, are paying you a boatload of money," Lalas stated. "And as I said before, you have returned, maybe even more so in what you have done on the field and the attention that you were brought. But it does rub me a little the wrong way that Messi - as awesome as he is - it doesn't mean that he is not worthy of criticism."

He also called it a bad look for both Messi and for MLS, as the two parties could have found a potential compromise.

“It's a bad look for Messi. I think it's a bad look for MLS. And again, it goes back to communication," Lalas said. "This could have been sorted out beforehand, if Messi truly does not want to play in the All-Star game. I don't agree with it. But it's Messi. So you figure out a way to just [address] the situation as opposed to making it a story right now.

"You get with his representation and you get with the league and you figure out a way to make it so that yes, he does have some sort of injury or so or something that's going that's going on.”

New York Red Bulls v Inter Miami CF

WHAT HAPPENED?

Landon Donovan used David Beckham as an example, pointing to the fact that he understood what such games meant for MLS.

“All the talk is around Lionel Messi and why he is not attending,” Donovan posted on Instagram. “When David Beckham came into the league, he uniquely understood the value of these big events for the league. And whether David agreed with it at the time or not, he understood the league's perspective. Now Lionel Messi and David are not the same person, but they're having the same impact on the league at different points in the league’s history."

Donovan said he understands why Messi skipped the game and acknowledged that the Miami star has played a lot of games over the last few months. But he added that it's going to be interesting to see how the league responds.

“From the League's perspective this is really frustrating because you have your best player, your partners want him there, the owners want him there, the sponsors want him there, the fans want him there, the other guys on the MLS All-Star team want the chance to play with Messi - that's a dream for them," he said. “So this becomes a really challenging situation, and from the league standpoint now, what do you do? ... Inter Miami and the league are trying to renegotiate, so that he stays here - his contract is up at the end of the season."

He added that Beckham's ownership role with Inter Miami could also complicate matters.

"Beckham is also an Inter Miami owner, so we don't know exactly what went on behind the scenes," he said. "From Lionel Messi's standpoint, I can understand why he didn't want to come. It makes me appreciate David much more in doing those things he didn't want to do. It puts the league in a really, really tough position now."

THE BIGGER PICTURE

As per the MLS’ rules, players who miss the All-Star game are face a one-match suspension, which means that Messi and Alba could potentially miss Inter Miami’s next game against FC Cincinnati. However, the league hasn’t confirmed whether there will be suspensions. Commissioner Don Garber declined to comment on any disciplinary action.

New York Red Bulls v Inter Miami CF

WHAT’S NEXT?

Inter Miami's next match is against FC Cincinnati on Saturday in the MLS at Chase Stadium.