MIAMI (AP) — Lionel Messi is being sued by a Miami-based event promoter that claims the soccer icon violated the terms of his $7 million contract by sitting out last year’s exhibition match.
Vid Music Group filed suit last month in Miami-Dade Circuit Court against Messi and the Argentine Soccer Federation, charging them with fraud and breach of contract, according to court records.
Messi and the AFA did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment.
Considered one of the greatest soccer players of all time, Messi has played for both his Major League Soccer club Inter Miami and the Argentina national team, with fans routinely paying much higher prices for the chance to watch him play.
Last summer, Bid entered into a deal with AFA that gave him exclusive rights to organize and promote Argentina’s friendly games against Venezuela and Puerto Rico last October in exchange for ticket, broadcast and sponsorship revenue, according to the complaint. Vid claims that Messi was supposed to play at least 30 minutes in each match unless he was injured.
According to the complaint, Messi, 38, watched the 1-0 victory between Argentina and Venezuela on Oct. 10 from his suite at South Florida’s Hard Rock Stadium.
The next day, Messi scored two goals in Inter Miami’s 4-0 MLS victory over Atlanta. This game was an important one for Inter Miami to secure home field advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
Then, on October 14, Messi played in Argentina’s 6-0 victory over Puerto Rico. The game was originally scheduled to be held in Chicago, but organizers moved the game to Florida after poor ticket sales in the city, where Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents had arrested more than 1,000 people. AFA condemned immigration crackdown The small venue in Fort Lauderdale did not sell out, even though ticket prices were reduced to $25 each.
Vid did not specify the damages he is seeking in his lawsuit, but alleges he lost millions of dollars because Messi missed one match and because of poor ticket sales for another.
