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Inter Miami vs. NYCFC score: MLS result, stats as Messi rescues 10-man Herons in last-gasp draw to begin 2025

Last year’s Supporters’ Shield winners will be targeting a title in 2025, but their got off to an inauspicious start as they needed a last-gasp equalizer to snatch a 2-2 draw against NYCFC at home.

A disappointing playoff finish last fall left a bitter taste in Inter Miami’s mouth, and their redemption charge appeared on track early as Tomas Aviles put the Herons in front just five minutes into the new season.

Yet Aviles went from hero to zero minutes later as he was sent off for denying a goal scoring opportunity before the half-hour mark in a controversial refereeing decision. With NYCFC scoring on the ensuing free-kick, Inter Miami found themselves a man down for over an hour.

Inter Miami recovered well to end the half strong, but NYCFC took over control after the break and would go in front 10 minutes later as Jordi Alba gifted Alonso Martinez the go-ahead goal.

It seemed NYCFC would manage to see it out, but near the end of 11 added minutes the magic man Messi put the team on his back, producing a moment of brilliance as he assisted a wonderful late winner by substitute Telasco Segovia. It would be remiss not to mention the Venezuelan’s sublime finish as well, as Inter Miami’s offseason addition brilliantly chipped Matt Freese on his MLS debut.

Inter Miami will feel hard done by from a number of dubious refereeing decisions, including a failure to send off Strahinja Tanasijevic just before halftime, but in the end they will feel good about the result even if a draw would have been considered a disappointment prior to match start.

The Sporting News followed the Inter Miami vs. NYCFC match live, providing score updates, commentary.

Latest live updates | Team news and lineups | How to watch where you are

Inter Miami vs. NYCFC final score

  Score (2H) Goal scorers
Inter Miami 2 Aviles (5′),
Segovia (90+10′)
NYCFC 2 Ilenic (26′),
A. Martinez (55′)

Location: Chase Stadium (Ft. Lauderdale, FL)
Referee: Rosendo Mendoza

Starting lineups:

Inter Miami (4-4-1-1, right to left): 19. Oscar Ustari (GK) — 57. Marcelo Weigandt (Redondo, 46′), 6. Tomas Aviles (red card, 24′), 32. Noah Allen, 18. Jordi Alba — 7. Fafa Picault (Taylor, 10′), 30. Benjamin Cremaschi (Lujan, 58′), 5. Sergio Busquets, 41. David Ruiz (Fray, 26′) — 10. Lionel Messi — 9. Luis Suarez (Sevgovia, 58′).

NYCFC (4-2-3-1, right to left): 49. Matt Freese (GK) — 35. Mitja Ilenic, 5. Berk Risa, 19. Strahinja Tanasijevic (Shore, 46′), 22. Kevin O’Toole (Cavallo, 69′) — 80. Justin Haak, 55. Keaton Parks — 17. Hannes Wolf, 10. Maxi Moralez (Perea, 78′), 26. Agustin Ojeda (J. Fernandez, 69′) — 16. Alonso Martinez (Bakrar, 90′).

Inter Miami vs. NYCFC stats

Inter Miami Stat NYCFC
14 Shots 8
6 Shots on target 5
2.34 Expected goals 1.13
59% Possession 41%
557 Accurate passes 366
7 Corners 2
8 Fouls 11
3 Yellow cards 2
1 Red cards 0

Inter Miami vs. NYCFC live updates, highlights from MLS opener

FULLTIME: Inter Miami 2-2 NYCFC

What a finish for Inter Miami as they snatch a point right at the death! Lionel Messi once again did all the heavy lifting for the Herons, and NYCFC will be disappointed not to convert their lead and man advantage into a win on the road.

After the match ends, Messi begins screaming angrily at the official, and he picks up a yellow card before finally finishing his diatribe and walking off the pitch. Spicy!

90+10 min: GOAL! INTER MIAMI! MESSI MAGIC HAS THE HOSTS LEVEL! The Argentine great puts Inter Miami on his back once again, charging forward towards the NYCFC defense with venom before feeding a picture perfect through-ball for Segovia.

The substitute does the rest with a delicious chip over Matt Freese, and Inter Miami have dragged themselves back!

90+5 min: Chance, Inter Miami! Federico Redondo finds Lionel Messi inside the six-yard box, but he’s tackled from behind before he can get a shot off and the ball skitters out of harm’s way!

Matt Freese is booked for time wasting after taking too long for a goal kick.

89th min: As Alonso Martinez is substituted off and replaced by Monsef Bakrar, the referee shows ELEVEN minutes of stoppage time, which will give Inter Miami hope as they push forward and look for an equalizer.

86th min: There’s a long VAR check here for a possible Inter Miami penalty, as a Jordi Alba cross hits the arm of a sliding defender. This should never be a penalty, as the ball clipped off the defender’s knee and then up into his arm which is in a natural sliding position to help keep him balanced.

Why are they looking at this for so long? Eventually they come to the right decision, as play continues, but that review took far too long for an obvious call.

84th min: Chance, Inter Miami! FEDERICO REDONDO MISSES A WIDE-OPEN CHANCE TO EQUALIZE!

Jordi Alba does brilliantly to get free down the left and get to the byline, and he cuts it back perfectly for Redondo who is wide open just inside the penalty area…but he first-times the ball just inches wide! That HAS to be a goal, the goalkeeper was slow to track back and no defenders were challenging his effort!

78th min: Chance, NYCFC! An incredible back-heel flick by Gonzalo Lujan is vital to prevent the visitors from grabbing an easy third goal! Off another cheap Inter Miami giveaway, Alonso Martinez looks to square the ball for Julian Fernandez wide open at the far post, and it looks that Lujan has overrun the cross, but he sticks his foot out behind him and manages to get contact on the ball, which prevents it from reaching Fernandez!

Andres Perea comes on to replace Maxi Moralez, who at 37 years old has faded in this match.

72nd min: Chance, Inter Miami! A gloriously vintage Messi moment sees the Argentine legend take on three NYCFC defenders and win a free-kick in a dangerous position from about 20 yards out.

There’s only one option here, as Messi takes the set-piece and goes for goal, and it forces Matt Freese to make a diving save. The shot is just weak enough that while Freese has to dive, he can easily catch it…except he spills it!

There’s a scramble by players on both sides to get on the loose ball, and Freese takes a blow to the face in the awkward scrum. As the ball is finally cleared, the NYCFC goalkeeper needs treatment for what appears to be a kick to his cheek. After a long stoppage, Freese is cleared by the medical staff and is ok to continue.

68th min: YIKES, Oscar Ustari comes way off his line to clear a vertical ball before NYCFC attackers can reach it, but it looks as if for a moment he forgets that he’s outside the 18-yard box. The Inter Miami backup goalkeeper appears to nearly handle the ball before reminding himself at the last second he can’t in that position and tackles instead. Awkward but effective!

NYCFC make their next two changes, with Agustin Ojeda and Kevin O’Toole coming off, replaced by Nico Cavallo and Julian Fernandez.

64th min: Chance, Inter Miami! Matt Freese comes out off his line just quick enough to smother the ball before Lionel Messi can reach it! There’s a ball over the top from Inter Miami and Messi comes racing onto it, but Freese makes it there just in time, absorbing a kick from Messi in the process.

57th min: Chance, Inter Miami! Lionel Messi gets free and squeezes a shot between two defenders, but Matt Freese is there to make the save on the tight-angle shot!

Knowing they are now down a goal, Javier Mascherano makes another change by withdrawing Luis Suarez and bringing on Telasco Segovia. He also takes off the booked Benjamin Cremaschi and brings on Gonzalo Lugan. This moves back to a 4-4-1 with Lionel Messi up top and Segovia to left-back.

55th min: GOAL! NYCFC! OH NO, JORDI ALBA GIFTS NYCFC THE LEAD! He tries to pass the ball back to his goalkeeper, and instead he gives it right to Alonso Martinez, who turns and fires it past Oscar Ustari for the lead!

You almost never see that from an experienced and world-class player like Alba! What an error!

53rd min: NYCFC regrouped well at halftime and have started the second half with all the possession. Inter Miami are bunkered in and defending down a man, and have so far kept the visitors from breaking them down.

2nd half kickoff: The second half begins as Federico Redondo comes on for Inter Miami, who move to a back three. Sergio Busquets will play at center-back alongside Ian Fray and Noah Allen, while Redondo helps shore up the midfield.

NYCFC also makes a change, with Tanasijevic yanked and replaced by Jonathan Shore. The former is lucky not to have been sent off for a second yellow card just before half, and Pascal Jansen recognizes that he can’t afford to leave the defender on a knife edge for another 45 minutes.

HALFTIME: Inter Miami 1-1 NYCFC

What a wild first 45 minutes of action at Chase Stadium, and it finishes in fiery fashion as Luis Suarez gets into a scuffle with Birk Risa!

Inter Miami went in front just five minutes into the 2025 MLS season, but the goal scorer Tomas Aviles was controversially sent off before the half-hour mark.

NYCFC took advantage immediately, but Inter Miami grew back into the game despite playing a man down, and were the better side towards the close of the first half. The Herons have been on the wrong end of a few controversial referee decisions, which have added to the needle in the match. Inter Miami had disciplinary issues last season, and they always seemed to lose their heads when they felt hard done by. Could that be happening again?

45+8 min: Chance, Inter Miami! Jordi Alba has a free shot on goal from the right flank, but Birk Risa makes a last-gasp block! That looked to be an open chance but the NYCFC defender managed to recover just in time!

45+5 min: Chance, Inter Miami! Matt Freese with a WONDERFUL save on Robert Taylor to deny the hosts a man-down goal! The substitute gets free down the left and is fed in by Lionel Messi, but Freese comes out to make a big stop!

45+3 min: OH MY, Inter Miami players are LIVID as Strahinja Tanasijevic pulverizes Luis Suarez in midfield, forcing the referee to blow his whistle for a clear foul…but does not send the NYCFC center-back off! The hosts are absolutely furious with the decision, as Lionel Messi is gesturing wildly protesting for a second yellow card.

That’s an incredibly late and reckless challenge, and Inter Miami have every right to be upset with the failure to book Tanasijevic a second time in three minutes. It deserved a second yellow.

45+1 min: A very late lunging challenge from NYCFC center-back Strahinja Tanasijevic on Sergio Busquets sees him into the referee’s book with the first yellow card for the visiting side.

Eight minutes of stoppage time are shown, which largely stem from the Fafa Picault injury and VAR review on the Tomas Aviles red.

40th min: Benjamin Cremaschi bulldozes Birk Risa after arriving slightly too late to a 50/50 challenge, and is rightly booked by the referee.

38th min: Chance, NYCFC! Justin Haak forces a save by Oscar Ustari with a headed effort right in front of net! If that header ends up anywhere else on target but straight at the goalkeeper, it’s probably a second for NYCFC, but in the end his shot goes right into the bread basket of the Inter Miami goalkeeper.

28th min: Chance, NYCFC! WOW! A heat-seeker from Maxi Moralez from miles outside the penalty area requires a SPECTACULAR save by Oscar Ustari to tip the ball wide of the frame! It’s a truly electric save from the Inter Miami backup goalkeeper who soars through the air to get his fingertips to the ball!

The red card has turned this game completely on its head almost immediately!

26th min: GOAL! NYCFC! THEY’VE EQUALIZED OFF THE FREE-KICK ROUTINE! The entire Inter Miami squad thinks Maxi Moralez will shoot, but instead he threads in Mitja Ilenic down the right who cuts a perfectly placed tight-angle shot past Oscar Ustari!

Notably, Ilenic celebrates with the Cristiano Ronaldo “SIU” motion against Lionel Messi’s side.

24th min: RED CARD, INTER MIAMI! TOMAS AVILES HAS BEEN SENT OFF!

Alonso Martinez somehow squeezes through past two Inter Miami defenders, and Aviles tackles him at the very top edge of the penalty area. The referee blows his whistle and points for the foul, and then produces a red card for denying a goal scoring opportunity!

VAR takes a long look, both at the foul and the positioning of the incident, and lets the play stand! It’s a VERY controversial call, because Aviles appears to very clearly get the ball on the tackle. On the larger replay, however, it appears that the decision is based on a slight shirt pull before the tackle itself — which is incredibly soft, but at least defensible.

Had it been for the tackle, it would have resulted in a penalty too, because it was clearly inside the 18-yard-box. Instead, they give a free-kick for the shirt pull just before, which allows Aviles to get in position for the tackle. 

Jordi Alba is booked for dissent while the VAR review takes place.

22nd min: Chance, Inter Miami! How has Luis Suarez bungled this chance?!?!? Benjamin Cremaschi springs Lionel Messi down the right on the counter-attack, who is in acres of space, and it sparks a two-on-one breakaway. Suarez is all alone at the far post, and Messi delivers a perfect ball to his striker.

It looks like Suarez slips as he goes to make contact, and despite having no defender in the vicinity, he sends the ball crashing into the stands, nowhere close to the net!

20th min: The referee has to get involved as Agustin Ojeda goes to ground shielding the ball from Marcelo Weigandt, and the Inter Miami full-back aggressively kicks the ball through the legs of Ojeda on the ground. The NYCFC midfielder cringes in pain, and the replay shows that Weigandt appears to catch his opponent with the follow-through, but it’s a legal play as he did target the ball which was in play.

NYCFC aren’t very happy about it all, but there’s no punishment, and Ojeda eventually gets to his feet and will continue.

12th min: Chance, Inter Miami! Lionel Messi is SO close to doubling the Inter Miami lead, but for an excellent last-gasp tackle from Kevin O’Toole! He charges onto a cutback from the left edge of the six-yard box, but O’Toole gets there JUST before Messi reaches the ball!

7th min: Inter Miami are in front, but it’s a nightmare first start for new signing Fafa Picault who has done his left hamstring early in this match. He pulls up near the halfway line and gestures for a substitution, and it seems there’s very little chance of him continuing. He has a resigned look on his face as Robert Taylor warms on the touchline.

After treatment, Picault needs the stretcher to make it off the pitch, and Taylor indeed comes on in his place.

5th min: GOAL! INTER MIAMI! The hosts take an early lead off the corner as Tomas Aviles scores the Herons’ first goal of 2025!

It comes off the corner which is played short and cycled around to the middle, and Jordi Alba springs Lionel Messi with a vertical ball that unlocks the NYCFC back line. He then touches it across the face of goal to Aviles who crashes and slides to slot it in the back of the net!

4th min: Inter Miami have a dangerous set-piece chance as Jordi Alba is fouled right on the edge of the attacking third. It’s way too far from goal for Lionel Messi to shoot, but he delivers a looping ball towards the far post which can only be touched out of play by the NYCFC defenders for a corner.

Kickoff: They’re under way at Chase Stadium, and the 2025 MLS season is now officially under way for both these clubs!

The 70-degree kickoff temperature sure is a lot more comfortable than it was in Kansas City a few days ago!

Inter Miami vs. NYCFC: Pre-match commentary, analysis, more

15 mins to kickoff: Lionel Messi already has a goal on the season, bagging the only strike against Sporting KC midweek in the 1-0 CONCACAF Champions Cup victory. Can he open his MLS account tonight? Kickoff is minutes away!

30 mins to kickoff: For NYCFC, Maxi Moralez may be 37 years old, but he starts on Opening Day once again for NYCFC. Also of note, he has his No. 10 shirt back after the departure of Santiago Rodriguez. Despite a six-month stint at Argentine side Racing in 2023, Moralez has been with the MLS club since joining eight years ago, blossoming into a fan favorite.

Head coach Pascal Jansen has made some slight alterations from last year’s side, but aside from Rodriguez’s exit and the loss of James Sands, this roster is largely the same. The most glaring absence is that of captain Thiago Martins at center-back, who is unavailable due to injury along with full-back Tayvon Gray.

45 mins to kickoff: Lineups are in. For Inter Miami, there’s some rotation as expected, but Lionel Messi starts as does Luis Suarez. David Ruiz also enters the lineup, as does Fafa Picault for his full Inter Miami debut. Benjamin Cremaschi enters in midfield, with Federico Redondo moving to the bench.

The most interesting decision from Javier Mascherano is to deploy natural left-back Noah Allen at center-back, with Jordi Alba coming in. With Maxi Falcon brought in during the offseason, it’s a curious move for Allen to be deployed in the middle.

1 hour to kickoff: While we await lineups, one player we know won’t be involved for NYCFC is Santiago Rodriguez, whom the club announced has joined Botafogo, reportedly for a whopping $17 million transfer fee, the second-highest in club history.

1 hour 15 mins to kick: NYCFC head coach Pascal Jansen is keenly aware of Inter Miami’s ability to score goals, not only to put themselves ahead, but also to pull themselves back from deficits.

“I see a team on the pitch in Miami that loves to play the game, they enjoy playing together,” Jansen said. “They look forward to each and every game. They’ve won a lot of games from being a goal down, is something that’s shown over the games they’ve played.”

1 hour 30 mins to kick: Inter Miami will wear their home pinks for this MLS opener tonight.

1 hour 45 mins to kick: Inter Miami’s hunt for redemption in 2025 will come with a new man at the helm in Javier Mascherano. The former Messi teammate with both Barcelona and Argentina is now in charge, having worked in the Argentine youth system before being hired by the Herons for his first senior managerial gig.

It’s a risky move by Inter Miami, who were led by the veteran Gerardo Martino until his departure this past offseason. They are banking on the chemistry between Mascherano and Messi outshining his significant inexperience.

2 hours to kickoff: While it’s expected that Lionel Messi will take the field tonight, there IS a small chance that the Argentine does not start this MLS game.

Head coach Javier Mascherano indicated that he would potentially rotate the squad given the simultaneous battle in the CONCACAF Champions Cup, but he did not give specifics on who would be considered to sit.

Inter Miami vs. NYCFC kick off time

This MLS season-opening match kicks off from Chase Stadium on Saturday, February 22 at 7:30 p.m. local time in Ft. Lauderdale. Here’s how that time translates across the time zones in North America:

  Date Kickoff time
Eastern Time Sat, Feb. 22 7:30 p.m. ET
Central Time Sat, Feb. 22 6:30 p.m. CT
Mountain Time Sat, Feb. 22 5:30 p.m. MT
Pacific Time Sat, Feb. 22 4:30 p.m. PT

Inter Miami vs. NYCFC lineups, team news

Goalkeeper Drake Callender is reportedly recovered from his offseason groin injury suffered while on USMNT international duty, but is not in the squad, so Oscar Ustari remains in net as he was midweek.

Head coach Javier Mascherano did indicate that he would protect certain players from injury in this match so that they can remain fit for the second leg of their continental matchup to come in a few days, but he did not specify who.

New Inter Miami offseason additions who could factor in include defenders Maxi Falcon and Gonzalo Lujan, plus winger Fafa Picault, while the likes of Diego Gomez, Matias Rojas, Leo Campana, and Facundo Farias have departed.

Inter Miami starting lineup (4-4-1-1): Ustari (GK) — Weigandt, Aviles, Allen, Alba — Picault, Cremaschi, Busquets, D. Ruiz — Messi — Suarez.

Inter Miami subs: Novo, Fray, Falcon, Lujan, Redondo, Segovia, Taylor, Allende, Afonso.

In the offseason, NYCFC sent standout midfielder James Sands on loan to German club St. Pauli, only for him to suffer a long-term ankle injury within the first 6 weeks. They also lost Thiago Andrade to San Diego FC via the expansion draft, sent Talles Magno on loan to Corinthians, and just announced the departure of Santiago Rodriguez to Botafogo an hour before this match kicked off.

They made very few incoming moves, picking up two young collegiate players in the draft plus another homegrown, but it’s tough to know which of them will factor in early on, if any. This is largely the same NYCFC side that ended the 2024 season.

On the injury front, captain Thiago Martins and full-back Tayvon Gray are both unavailable, weakening the back line some.

NYCFC starting lineup (4-2-3-1): Freese (GK) — Ilenic, Risa, Tanasijevic, O’Toole — Haak, Parks — Wolf, Moralez, Ojeda— A. Martinez.

NYCFC subs: (Lineups released one hour prior to kickoff)

Inter Miami vs. NYCFC live stream, TV channel

No matter where in the world you live, the only way to catch every single match of the 2025 MLS season is on MLS Season Pass from Apple TV.

While some games will be shown on TV domestically in the United States, this match was not selected for television coverage.

Apple has done away with the select free-to-air matches that used to be available most matchweeks, instead making some games available to all Apple TV+ subscribers regardless of MLS Season Pass subscription status. This game was selected for Apple TV+ streaming in such a manner.

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