Lionel Messi Is Already Having An Insane Financial Impact On US Soccer

Lionel Messi has been a member of Inter Miami and MLS for just a few weeks. But his impact on and off the field has already created some jaw dropping numbers for the league and soccer in the United States.

In his debut, Messi put home an incredible set piece goal late in the match, securing a victory for his team.

READ: LIONEL MESSI SCORES INCREDIBLE SET PIECE GOAL IN INTER MIAMI DEBUT

He then scored two more in his next game while adding an assist. Three goals and an assist in two matches is just about as good as it gets.

While Inter Miami is enjoying his on-field production, they're also reaping the benefits of Messi's one man financial impact off the field.

Sports reporter Joe Pompliano posted a breakdown on Saturday of just how influential Messi has already been for Miami's bottom line. As well as his influence on MLS and soccer as a whole in the United States.

As one example, Inter Miami owner Jorge Mas recently said he believes annual revenue could double in a single year, and the valuation of the club may increase by over a billion dollars. How could this happen?

Well, Messi is so unimaginably popular, he's essentially his own soccer nation. In just 30 days, Inter Miami added 11 million Instagram followers. Thanks to those additions, they now have more followers than every other MLS team combined. That also made them the fourth most followed sports team in all of U.S. sports, ahead of every NFL and MLB franchise.

Inter Miami's Lionel Messi, left, celebrates with teammate Robert Taylor (16) after scoring a second goal against Atlanta United at DRV PNK Stadium on Tuesday, July 25, 2023, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. (Matias J. Ocner/Miami Herald/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

Lionel Messi Is A One-Man Machine

Instantly, those additional followers makes Inter Miami CF more valuable to sponsors and corporate partners, since interest and visibility have skyrocketed since he arrived.

But that's just one team. And Messi's arrival is going to have a massive impact on the entire league.

How? MLS Season Pass signups.

Apple agreed to give Messi a cut of all new MLS Season Pass signups to help promote the service. And with 480 million Instagram followers seeing links from the 36-year-old, interest has already skyrocketed.

Messi's also a huge boon for merchandise sales; his popularity at Barcelona reportedly led to over two million shirt sales per year.

You're going to start seeing a lot more Inter Miami CF Messi shirts walking around.

Raising the popularity level of MLS will undoubtedly drive significant interest in soccer across the country. Other European league stars have joined MLS in the past, but none have been remotely close to Messi's level.

Widely viewed as one of the best soccer players in history, coming to the United States at the tail end of his prime. Bringing one of the world's largest country's worth of followers with him.

The financial impacts from Lio Messi are almost hard to comprehend. But instantly making Miami one of the sports world's most valuable franchises is a good place to start.