Inter Miami’s new stadium won’t be ready until 2026 season, report says

The development of Miami Freedom Park, the new stadium for Major League Soccer’s Inter Miami, won’t be ready until 2026, according to a new report. Initial plans for the 25,000-seat stadium called for an opening for the 2025 season. However, construction updates show minimal progress on the stadium despite clearing the land.

Football Miami TVAn Inter Miami fan channel on YouTube has been videotaping the progress of the stadium and surrounding grounds since 2023. The lack of development has raised questions about whether Lionel Messi will play in the new stadium. The Argentine has one year left on his current contract with Inter Miami, so if the club delays moving into the new stadium, Messi may not get a boost in his debut.

“The permits for the foundation work have been approved, so we should start to see real progress,” Football Miami TV Host Pieter Brown told viewers: “I was told the vertical build would take place in a month or two.

“Opening date? End of 2025. The team would not play next year (in 2025) in the stadium. The season would be in 2026.”

In other words, Brown’s report means that Lionel Messi will not play an MLS game at Miami Freedom Park. His contract expires at the end of the 2025 season.

The former Melreese Country Club, near Miami International Airport, needed extensive rehabilitation after years of contamination from toxic ash underground. Football Miami TV Newly captured construction equipment is hitting the ground to make it firmer and more solid. This will help better secure the stadium’s foundations before the stadium is built.