Inter Miami was given a rare chance because of their financial strength, which made the huge effect of Lionel Messi’s move to Major League Soccer (MLS) clear.

The shocking arrival of the Argentine superstar in the United States in 2023 was met with an unprecedented reaction from the American people. Messi got treated like a rock star when he went on trips with his new team across the country, and shirts with his name on them sold in crazy large numbers. 

As fans and famous people flocked to see the renowned forward play in the World Cup, shirts with his famous No. 10 quickly became a must-have fashion item in the US. Well-known people like Kim Kardashian, Selena Gomez, and LeBron James watched him play in his first few months at DRV PNK Stadium.

Now, the amazing effects of “Messi mania” are quickly becoming clear. For example, MLS has given Inter Miami permission to make a special new strip for 2024. Footy Headlines says that the kit’s color design will be a nod to the Miami Dolphins, an NFL team.

This possible nod to the famous two-time Super Bowl winners could be a big hit for the MLS team owned by David Beckham. Along with LAFC, LA Galaxy, Kansas City, and Portland Timbers, four other MLS teams will also have a third kit next season.

The Dolphins play in turquoise with orange and white stripes, which is very different from Vice City’s normal pale pink strip. Still, a kit that pays more than a passing tribute to another important Florida sports tradition might be liked by people in Florida and around the world. 

The fact that more than 100,000 shirts have been sold shows how Messi’s move to the US has changed culture in less than six months. While Tom Brady was with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, sales of the Herons’ famous pale pink shirts broke all kinds of records. They sold more than Tom Brady jerseys.

To add to that, Tor Southard, the senior head of Adidas’ football division, told the New York Times that orders hit 500,000 after Messi announced he was moving to Miami in the summer. This amount is more than what Manchester United, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, and Arsenal all did during the same time period.

Another thing that people liked about Miami shirts was that they were stylish. Vogue Magazine named the jerseys one of the must-have items of the year. They agreed that the fact that people are still lining up to get Messi shirts shows how famous he is.