The 8 MLS teams Lionel Messi has failed to score against for Inter Miami | OneFootball

Lionel Messi has made a habit of tormenting Major League Soccer defences since joining Inter Miami in 2023, racking up goals at a remarkable rate to become the fledgling club’s all-time top goalscorer.

But even the great Messi has found a few teams harder to crack than others. Whether through stubborn defending, bad luck or simply a lack of opportunities, there are eight MLS clubs still waiting to concede their first goal to the Argentinian icon.

Of the 30 MLS franchises, here are the eight that Messi is yet to score against in the competition.

LAFC

Given that Inter Miami and Los Angeles Football Club are in different conferences, they haven’t faced one another all too often – just twice in MLS in the Messi era.

The first was a 3-1 away win back in April 2023. Messi didn’t score but he did set up goals for Jordi Alba and Leonardo Campana. Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Holland, Selena Gomez, Will Ferell and Owen Wilson were all in attendance for that one. Pure Hollywood.

LAFC got their revenge in a 3-0 victory over Inter Miami in the opener of the 2026 MLS season. It was a turbulent start to the season for the reigning champions and Javier Mascherano didn’t last much longer in the job.

Messi might not have scored against LAFC in MLS, but he has scored against them in the CONCACAF Champions Cup, North America’s equivalent of the Champions League. He scored twice and set up another as Miami produced a second-leg quarter-final comeback back in 2025.

Real Salt Lake

Messi has played twice against Western Conference outfit Real Salt Lake – completing 90 minutes in routine 2-0 victories in the 2024 and 2026 campaigns.

He didn’t score, but he did assist Finland international Robert Taylor for the opener in the first game, while he drew a rare blank in the second.

Chicago Fire

Inter Miami have faced off against Chicago Fire six times since Messi’s arrival. But he’s only featured in two of those games.

The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner was sidelined for a 4-1 defeat in October 2023, while a ligament injury kept him out of the league double Miami completed over Chicago in the 2024 MLS campaign.

Messi finally played against the Fire in a forgettable goalless draw last April, before failing to score or assist in a madcap 5-3 defeat in the return fixture.

He was still resting four days after this year’s World Cup final defeat when his Inter Miami team-mates, inspired by a Luis Suarez brace, beat a Chicago Fire side fresh from signing Robert Lewandowski 3-2.

San Jose Earthquakes

Messi has played just once against San Jose Earthquakes – and it was a six-goal thriller, a 3-3 draw back in May 2025.

The veteran superstar completed 90 minutes, but he surprisingly didn’t have a direct hand in any of Inter Miami’s three goals. Jordi Alba notched two assists, and Tadeo Allende scored twice.

Vancouver Whitecaps

Inter Miami beat Vancouver 2-1 in Messi’s absence back in May 2024. That’s their only regular season MLS meeting since he joined the club.

Messi had faced off against the Whitecaps in the semi-finals of the 2025 CONCACAF Champions Cup. He played every minute of both legs as Inter Miami were well beaten home and away, losing 2-0 and 3-1.

He got revenge in the final of last year’s MLS Cup, though. He didn’t score, but he assisted Rodrigo De Paul and Tadeo Allende’s goals in a 3-1 victory that crowned Inter Miami MLS champions for the first time in the Messi era.

FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo, San Diego FC*

*Messi hasn’t scored against the above teams in MLS (he did score twice in a penalty shootout victory over Dallas in the 2023 Leagues Cup) but there’s a pretty good reason for that…

…He still hasn’t played against them.

Inter Miami played Texan sides Dallas and Houston in their 2025 MLS-winning campaign, but he sat out both of those matches.

2025 MLS expansion outfit San Diego are set to play their first-ever meeting against Inter Miami in September. One to watch.