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OFFICIAL: Leo Messi & Inter Miami are set to play the first ever match at Miami Freedom Park stadium on 4th April 2026, facing Austin FC!

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Lionel Messi and Inter Miami to play 1st MLS regular-season match in new stadium April 4

Inside Messi's Miami Freedom Park Stadium | TFC Stadiums
Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi, left, celebrates with forward Mateo Silvetti, right, after scoring during the first half of Game 3 in the first round of MLS soccer’s Western Conference playoffs against Nashville SC in Fort Lauderdale,
Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi, left, points to teammate Mateo Silvetti (not shown) after scoring during the first half of Game 3 in the first round of MLS soccer’s Western Conference playoffs against Nashville SC in Fort Lauderdale,

The 2026 MLS regular season starts Feb. 21 and runs through Nov. 7. It’ll be the last season in the February-to-November model, with a shortened season planned for 2027 and then the new summer-to-spring calendar for the 2027-28 campaign to closer align with other global leagues.

Inter Miami will open the season with five consecutive road matches, which presumably will allow for the finishing touches to be made to Miami Freedom Park — the team’s still-under-construction home near Miami International Airport. It’s not clear yet if there will be preseason or other matches at the stadium before the April 4 date.

The home opener for Inter Miami will be against Austin FC, a 7:30 p.m. start inside the new 25,000-seat stadium. Messi signed a three-year extension in recent weeks to remain with the team into 2028 and getting that deal done cemented that he — as the team long hoped — would be there for the start of their run at the new facility.

Miami Freedom Park’s opening will start a planned run of three new MLS stadiums in a three-season span, with New York City FC’s Etihad Park set to open in 2027 and a new downtown stadium for Chicago Fire FC slated to open in 2028.

There will be a nearly two-month break for the FIFA World Cup, with no matches scheduled between May 25 and July 16.

Among the final pre-break matches: a doubleheader on FOX on May 24 with Inter Miami facing Philadelphia followed by LAFC against Seattle.

The MLS season will resume shortly before the end of the World Cup; MLS has some rivalry games scheduled for July 16 and 17, prior to the third-place match on July 18 and the World Cup final on July 19.

TV deal

Leo Messi set to inaugurate Inter Miami's new stadium

All 510 MLS regular season matches next season will be available on Apple TV in more than 100 countries and regions, with no blackouts and — in a change — no additional subscription required. Some MLS matches will also be available on FOX networks in the U.S., along with TSN and RDS in Canada.

The league will observe FIFA’s November window before opening the playoffs, which will allow for the postseason to run without interruption starting Nov. 18.

The league has not revealed the full postseason schedule.