Inter Miami completed a fairytale season by defeating the Vancouver Whitecaps 3–1 to win the 2025 MLS Cup, sealing the club’s first league title in what also marked the final professional appearances of Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets, MySportDab Reports.
The victory at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale delivered an emotional ending to an era and underlined Lionel Messi’s lasting impact on Major League Soccer.
The defining moment came in the closing stages when Alba delivered a sublime chipped pass to Messi, who controlled the ball and released Tadeo Allende to score.
It was a final flourish of the famous Alba-Messi connection that had terrorised defences during their Barcelona days, now recreated one last time in pink.
Messi, who was named MLS Cup MVP, paid tribute to his long-time teammates after the match. He described Alba and Busquets as two of the greatest players in football history and said he was happy they could end their careers by lifting the MLS Cup.
For Messi, the triumph was also personal, completing a journey that began when he joined Miami in 2023 with no guarantees of success.
Since arriving in MLS, Messi transformed the club. After early playoff disappointment, he delivered a remarkable 2025 campaign, scoring and assisting at historic levels and driving Miami through a challenging season.
The win represented vindication for co-owners David Beckham, Jorge Mas and Jose Mas, who built the project around bringing global superstars and a winning culture to South Florida.
Despite the celebrations, the final was not straightforward. Vancouver controlled long spells of the game, hit both posts through Emmanuel Sabbi and threatened to derail Miami’s dream. Under first-year coach Javier Mascherano, Miami showed resilience, capitalising on key moments and weathering pressure.
“This is the moment we were waiting for,” Messi said. “We worked all year for this.”
The triumph also signals the start of a new chapter for Inter Miami. With Alba and Busquets retiring and Luis Suárez unlikely to return, the squad will look different in 2026.
However, with Messi contracted until 2028 and Beckham determined to build a dynasty, Miami’s ambition remains unchanged: to keep dreaming—and winning.
