Lionel Messi’s impact on MLS and soccer in the U.S. was felt long before he ever put on an Inter Miami jersey and scored the winning goal of his debut in front of a crowd full of stars like LeBron James and Serena Williams.
In the first 24 hours alone after Messi confirmed his move to MLS, Inter Miami’s Instagram following jumped from one million to more than 5 million. Today, not even two months later, it’s at 11.9 million.
Soccer was already a successful and growing sport in the U.S. But thanks to the world’s greatest player, that interest is at an all-time high. The obvious surface-level effect of that interest is the potential boon for the business of American soccer, as ticket sales and ad revenue likely see an increase. But another benefit of that interest will be how it amplifies the awareness of causes off the field.
“Soccer is an unbelievable platform to really create change,” Apple TV analyst and former MLS player Taylor Twellman told FTW in an interview about the “Celebrating Impact” partnership between The Players’ Tribune and Audi.
“I just think it’s a lot easier [to have an impact] than it was 10, 15, 20 years ago when I was playing, just because soccer is way more at the forefront of the minds of sports fans, but more so the youth. Lionel Messi has [480] million followers on Instagram. Those aren’t all soccer fans. Those aren’t all soccer players. Soccer now transcends around the world, transcends sports.”
Two players using that platform of soccer to impact change in their communities are Real Salt Lake goalie Zac MacMath and Austin FC goalie Brad Stuver, both of whom were highlighted as part of the “Celebrating Impact” series and participated in a roundtable discussion about their community work ahead last week’s MLS All-Star Game at Audi Field.
MacMath works with Special Olympics Utah to help spread awareness of the organization and create a positive experience for the participating athletes. Stuver partners with The Laundry Project to help bring clean clothes to people in underserved areas.
“I feel that I’ve been given this platform for a reason,” said Stuver, who ESPN announced as a finalist for the Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian Award for a second year in a row. “Just because I play soccer, it gives me the unique opportunity to reach more people that everyday people don’t get the chance to. So for me, I want to be able to use that platform for as long as I can.”
.@brad_stuver of @AustinFC believes that good can be done with small actions.
For him, that includes supporting his community through the Laundry Project, a non-profit initiative that focuses on bringing clean clothes to those in underserved areas.
In partnership with Audi. pic.twitter.com/GsS6UPexs1
— The Players' Tribune (@PlayersTribune) June 5, 2023
The ever-increasing reach of MLS and its players presents an opportunity to spread the message of giving back and brings awareness to causes like the ones Stuver and MacMath champion that might otherwise go unnoticed by a larger audience.
“I’m not the biggest social media influencer,” MacMath said. “I don’t do a lot of posts and stuff like this. So I think this platform has probably been the biggest for me to get my message out to really try to help in the community and continue to show that there are a lot of people that need help.”
.@ZacMacMath believes in being a part of something bigger than himself.
The @realsaltlake goalkeeper is using his platform to spread awareness for @SpecialOlympics, as well as creating a positive community to help grow the game of soccer.
In partnership with Audi. pic.twitter.com/NW1QGuwpkd
— The Players' Tribune (@PlayersTribune) July 11, 2023
Andres Cardenas, CMO of Minute Media, the parent company of The Players’ Tribune, said one thing that stood out to him from the roundtable was how the message of community work goes all the way down to the youth level of soccer.
“Now that you have the academy structure within MLS, these guys are veterans,” Cardenas said. “So, it’s not only mentoring them on the pitch, but the different things they can do off the pitch and really inspiring the new generation from a young age on how important it is to be involved and give back to the communities locally.”
With Messi coming over, the reach of those messages can go even further and last longer as more youth aspire to follow in the footsteps of their favorite MLS players. The attention he commands increases the platform of the MLS as a whole, allowing for the league’s athletes to have an impact that goes beyond even the U.S.
“Soccer’s always been the number one sport in the world, I get that. But that doesn’t mean it can’t continue to grow,” Twellman said.
“I think the greater growth is obviously in the Unites States, because this is still an untapped market in so many different ways. But I don’t think I’m going to be crazy to say soccer can still grow around the world, because there are still people around the world that aren’t soccer fans, but they’re still on Instagram following Messi. And for the last 48 hours, all they’ve been seeing is Inter Miami stuff.”
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