This week’s Leagues Cup soccer matchup between The Philadelphia Union and Inter Miami has many left out of the stadium after game tickets sold out quickly.
Tuesday’s semifinals game in Chester, Pennsylvania, will pit The Union against Inter Miami, which features soccer sensation Lionel “Leo” Messi on the roster.
With a big name like Messi, who joined the MLS in June, headed our way, it’s no surprise tickets sold out within minutes of going on sale.
Tickets were up for grabs at 2 p.m. Saturday, but by 2:08 p.m., the Union announced that Tuesday’s match at Subaru Park had nearly sold out, with just a limited number of standing-room-only tickets remaining.
Can you still buy tickets to Tuesday’s match?
On The Union’s website, tickets are no longer shown as available for Tuesday’s 7 p.m. match. On Ticketmaster, resale tickets are aplenty, but they aren’t cheap.
Ticketmaster shows the cheapest two-ticket deal as $322 per ticket, plus fees, for standing room only. For a single ticket, $317, plus fees, is the cheapest option available, and is also standing room only.
An ample number of tickets are available in the $400 to $600 range, with the highest prices so far reaching nearly $1,700.
By comparison, prices for The Union’s game against FC Dallas on Sunday, Aug. 20, range from $35 to $102 on the Union’s website.
Tuesday’s Semifinal of the Leagues Cup will bring the winner to the finals, facing off against either Monterrey or Nashville on Saturday. The losers advance to the Third-Place Game, also held Aug. 19.
Why is Lionel Messi coming to Philadelphia?
Messi scored in the 86th minute to put the icing on Inter Miami’s 4-0 win over Charlotte FC in the Leagues Cup quarterfinal on Friday night at DRV PNK Stadium. The Union beat Querétaro 2-1 on Friday in a home game, setting up the match with Messi.
Messi has scored eight goals in five games — all Inter Miami victories. Now the team faces the Union in the final four of the Leagues Cup tournament. It’s a rarity for a team that sat in last place in the MLS playoff race before Messi joined the franchise co-owned by soccer legend David Beckham.
On Monday, it was reported that Messi appeared to injure his left foot while practicing with his team.
How did the Philadelphia Union get to the semifinals?
Philadelphia Union’s 2-1 victory over the Liga MX side set up their match with Messi and Inter Miami. Midfielder Jesus Bueno continued his breakout performance, “scoring his first goal from the run of play with the Boys in Blue in the 10th minute,” the team wrote in its recap of Friday’s game. Chris Donovan scored the game-winning goal in the 11th minute of second-half stoppage time.
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What is the Leagues Cup?
It’s a 47-team tournament that has pit Major League Soccer teams against teams in Mexico’s Liga MX.
The semifinals will be on Tuesday, Aug. 16. The final and third-place game will be held on Saturday, Aug. 19.
Where can you watch Lionel Messi play the Philadelphia Union on TV?
Tuesday’s game is not widely televised as all Leagues Cup games are part of the MLS’ streaming package, Season Pass, with Apple TV and you must subscribe for access. Subscriptions are about $15 a month.
Danielle Camilli and Safid Deen contributed to this report.
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