Concacaf may not have the world’s most hallowed Champions League. The confederation is so aware of that fact that it rebranded the competition as a Champions Cup two years ago.
Nonetheless, winning the continental competition is the ultimate aim for MLS’s most ambitious clubs, even though (or perhaps because) only one of its last 25 installments has seen an MLS team crowned as Concacaf’s best. Liga MX continues to dominate the competition, boasting 21 winners since 2001, even as MLS improves. Even Costa Rica’s Liga Promerica has more titles since the turn of the century thanks to back-to-back victories for Alajuelense and Saprissa in the mid-2000s.
Inter Miami have rapidly changed their stature since Lionel Messi’s arrival, first through winning the inaugural Leagues Cup in 2023. The following year, their MLS single-season points record secured the Supporters’ Shield. 2025 brought the league’s ultimate prize, as they beat the Vancouver Whitecaps to bring the Philip F Anschutz trophy to Fort Lauderdale.
Only the Champions Cup remains. And already, just four weeks into the 2026 season, Miami are out of the competition after their elimination at the hands of Nashville on Wednesday night.
One justification for MLS’s underperformance in the CCC is its timing. The competition kicks off in early February and wraps up in May. For MLS, a spring-to-winter joint since 1996, CCC qualifiers report to preseason earlier than their domestic rivals to sneak in two weeks of practice before the first round. For Liga MX, the tournament begins a month into the Torneo Clausura, the back half of its split schedule.
As the tournament starts, every MLS team is shaking off rust and the effects of offseason beers while their Liga MX rivals are in midseason form. It’s a disadvantage that helps justify MLS’s impending calendar flip.
And yet, timing played no role in Miami’s exiting two stages sooner than last year’s semi-final run. On Wednesday, they lost to an MLS rival.
Nashville SC have long operated in Miami’s shadow, with both teams having launched in MLS’s 2020 season. Miami opened with David Beckham, a sexy shade of pink, and a livestreamed demolition of a historic venue. Nashville had spent two years in the USL, and while their branding was certainly vibrant, their ethos was more “aw shucks” than awestriking.
Until 2023, Nashville were far more successful on the field, with Miami struggling to reach the playoffs or stay cap compliant. Since Messi arrived, Nashville have often played losing foil in some of Messi’s most memorable North American showings, from that first Leagues Cup final to the opening round of last fall’s MLS Cup playoffs. The team’s identity has evolved over time, from a bunkering side under Gary Smith to a more ambitious on-ball outfit under BJ Callaghan.
Wednesday’s second leg was the ultimate validation of Nashville’s rethink. They’re through to a quarter-final with Club América, while Miami begrudgingly clear some potential midweek matches from the calendar.
With CCC coming after months of offseason, the MLS teams that tend to do best carry over substantial parts of their core from the previous season. The 2022 Sounders made just one addition to their starting lineup (playmaker Albert Rusnák) in the winter before winning Concacaf. Recent finalists, like the 2024 Columbus Crew and 2025 Whitecaps, benefitted from similar continuity.
Due to a mix of players’ career decisions and a need to adapt, Miami took a different approach this past winter. While Sergio Busquets had lost most of his mobility before he left Barcelona, his technical acumen and positioning were vital factors for Miami in 2024 and 2025. He’s now retired. Jordi Alba seemed poised to return as recently as last May, when Miami signed the left-back to a new contract through 2027. Three months later, he joined Busquets in retirement – opening a designated player slot and a glaring need for his prolific chance creation.
Miami understandably got a non-DP left-back (Sergio Reguilón) and used that third DP slot on a striker, Germán Berterame. Injuries kept Reguilón from making his debut until last Saturday. Berterame was signed due to his goalscoring record with Monterrey, but he is thus far scoreless in 467 minutes. That includes all 180 minutes of the two-leg knockout series against Nashville which finished 1-1. As you assumed, Messi scored Miami’s goal.
Conversely, Nashville continue to benefit from their more focused offseason approach after last year’s first round exit in the tournament. Cristian Espinoza scored what proved to be the decisive goal against Miami on Wednesday, rewarding Nashville’s belief that he could elevate them just as they’d elevate him after an MLS career spent as the bright spot of some disappointing San Jose side. Whether or not they get past América, Callaghan’s side have established themselves among the front-runners to win the Supporters’ Shield and contend for MLS Cup – trophies that have so far eluded the club.
For Miami, the only “new” trophy on offer for 2026 was Concacaf’s. Their headline offseason additions (Bertérame and goalkeeper Dayne St Clair) had track records of success in the region. Miami will come together in time and still look capable of winning MLS Cup – but they weren’t ready for the bracket that mattered most for their superclub project. Maybe next year … unless?
The 2026 World Cup looms, and every Argentina match will raise questions about Messi’s future. La Albiceleste have made peace with the fact that this will be his final time on the sport’s grandest stage. Have Miami made similar concessions about their window of opportunity with Messi?
Messi’s latest extension runs through 2028. So long as he’s interested in playing for Miami, the club will contend on every front. With this elimination, 2026 no longer promises the thrills of Miami’s previous seasons in Florida. Instead, all that’s left is to play the hits.
