Inter Miami midfielder Lionel Messi celebrates his goal against Toronto FC on Saturday at BMO Field, one of the host venues for this summer's World Cup.Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press
With a record crowd in the stands and plenty of star power on the pitch, BMO Field served up a tasty appetizer Saturday of what lies ahead at this summer’s World Cup.
Argentine icon Lionel Messi lived up to his billing, scoring a goal and setting up two more as defending MLS Cup champion Inter Miami defeated Toronto FC 4-2.
The afternoon kickoff, Toronto’s last home game before the FIFA soccer showcase, served as a test run for the lakeside venue, with all 17,000 temporary seats installed for the World Cup being used for the first time.
The sellout crowd of 44,828 surpassed the 40,148 who attended the NHL’s outdoor Centennial Classic between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings on Jan. 1, 2017.
With the temporary seats filled, giving the stadium a full 360-degree feel, it made for an impressive backdrop for an entertaining game.
“To see where it is now, it’s a world-class stadium,” said Toronto coach Robin Fraser. “It feels like it’s going to be a great place for the World Cup.”
Messi and Canadian international Jonathan Osorio lead their teams onto the pitch for Saturday's match.Mark Blinch/Getty Images
BMO Field will host six World Cup games, starting with Canada’s June 12 opener against Bosnia and Herzegovina. That will be followed by four more group-stage games featuring Ghana, Panama, Germany, the Ivory Coast, Croatia, Senegal and Iraq before a round-of-32 fixture on July 2.
Rodrigo De Paul, Luis Suarez and substitute Sergio Reguilón also scored for Miami (6-2-4).
Toronto got consolation goals from substitute Emilio Aristizábal in the 82nd, after a turnover by Miami’s David Ayala, and 90th minutes. The home side argued unsuccessfully for a penalty in stoppage time when Derrick Etienne Jr. was taken down.
Injury-depleted Toronto (3-4-5) is now winless in seven consecutive games (0-3-4) in all competitions.
It was no coincidence that the test run coincided with the visit of Miami and Messi. The Argentine captain, Major League Soccer’s highest-paid player last season at US$20.45 million, draws fans like moths to a flame.
The area around Gate 4 was packed prior to Saturday’s game, with fans hoping for a glimpse of Messi as Miami’s two buses rolled in. More than a few wore Messi jerseys, either in Argentina blue or Miami pink.
“Whenever you’re the away team and you see a few pink jerseys in the crowd, it’s always nice. But hopefully the next time that I’m here, it’s all to support my team,” said Miami goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair, who hopes to start for Canada at the World Cup.
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Messi, who started up front alongside Uruguay’s Suarez and Argentine-born Mexican international Germán Berterame, drew cheers when he led pink-clad Miami out for warm-ups.
At 38, the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner conserves his energy when the ball is not in is vicinity. But he can still accelerate when needed, find pockets of space in the defence and freeze defenders as he comes forward.
And Messi can still thread a ball through traffic to a teammate and threaten from a set piece, as he did several times Saturday. He could have had a hat trick, had it not been for Toronto goalkeeper Luka Gavran.
The Argentine star played decoy when Miami opened the scoring in the 44th minute, letting De Paul take a free kick outside the Toronto penalty box. While his shot hit the Toronto wall, the ball came straight back to De Paul who beat a diving Gavran with an exquisite volley for his third goal of the season.
Gavran hopes to join St. Clair, last season’s MLS goalkeeper of the year, on Canada’s World Cup squad.
Messi danced through the Toronto penalty box early in the second half before finding Suarez, whose shot went just wide.
Toronto conceded four straight goals on Saturday before halving Miami's lead.Dan Hamilton/Reuters
Suarez found the target in the 56th minute, beating Gavran off a Messi feed for his third of the season. Toronto was incensed, arguing Raheem Edwards had been fouled earlier in the play. The Toronto fullback remained down, putting Suarez onside on the ensuing scoring play.
That, combined with the late non-penalty call by referee Victor Rivas, left Fraser flabbergasted.
“The things that’s really going to stick in my craw are those two calls,” he said. “Because I just don’t understand how a player gets fouled, he’s on the ground, he can’t move and he’s the one that keeps somebody onside for a goal. It’s mind-blowing to me.”
Edwards was felled by knee-on-knee contact, Fraser said.
“Hopefully it’s not a long-term thing for him,” the coach added.
Reguilón, taking a Messi pass, upped the lead in the 73rd minute and Messi padded the advantage two minutes later, deftly redirecting De Paul’s cross past Gavran.
Several pitch invaders disrupted the game as the clock wore down.
Messi confronts a fan who rushed the field.Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press
Both teams managed 11 shots with Miami holding a 6-5 edge in shots on target. The visitors had 59.9 per cent possession.
Spectators had to navigate new entry points to the stadium, via a pair of gates on the east side of the venue near the Coca-Cola Coliseum and Enercare Centre, as part of BMO Field’s expanded World Cup perimeter.
The two gates will serve as the main points of entry during the World Cup.
To help facilitate the flow of fans, gates opened 90 minutes ahead of the 1 p.m. ET kickoff, instead of the normal one hour. Getting in still took time, with some fans not making it to their seats by kickoff. But the stands soon filled.
With the Don Valley Parkway – a major north-south artery – closed for the weekend for maintenance, the journey to the stadium was more complicated for some.
Adding to the congestion was an afternoon Blue Jays baseball game, three kilometres to the east at Rogers Centre, that started two hours after the Major League Soccer kickoff.
While Metrolinx laid on more Go trains to get fans to the CNE grounds, there was trouble finding the entry gates with fans reporting poor signage. The security gates themselves were more efficient, with multiple scanning entry points.
Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, which owns TFC and manages the city-owned stadium, increased game-day staff – from food and beverage workers to security and housekeeping – in order to handle the bumper crowd.
Mother Nature co-operated, at least. It was a sunny 14 Celsius at kickoff.
Fans pack the temporary stands installed behind each net at BMO Field.Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press
Both Miami and Toronto were coming off dreadful home results.
Miami saw its nine-game unbeaten run (5-0-4) in league play snapped in shocking fashion Saturday. Blowing a 3-0 lead against Florida rival Orlando City, Miami lost 4-3 on a 93rd-minute goal by former TFC winger Tyrese Spicer.
Miami has yet to win at its new home with an 0-1-3 record at Nu Stadium.
Messi continues to impress, however. He arrived in Toronto tied for fourth in MLS scoring with eight goals, as well as two assists.
Toronto, meanwhile, lost 3-1 to Canadian Premier League champion Atletico Ottawa in Canadian Championship play Tuesday.
Toronto has been decimated by injuries, missing defenders Lazar Stefanovic (foot), Benjamin Kuscevic (groin), Richie Laryea (thigh), Matheus Pereira (groin) and Henry Wingo (thigh), midfielders Jose Cifuentes (knee) and Djordje Mihailovic (pelvis) and forwards Theo Corbeanu (knee), Jules-Anthony Vilsaint (groin) and Josh Sargent (thigh).
Miami came into the game with an 8-2-2 career record against TFC in league play and was unbeaten in the last five meetings (3-0-2) since a 2-0 loss at Toronto in March, 2023.
Saturday’s game marked the last of nine straight for Toronto in league play at BMO Field. TFC had won just two of the preceding eight (2-1-5) and has not recorded a home victory since a 3-2 decision over Colorado on April 4.
AFC Toronto plays host to the Montreal Roses in Northern Super League play Sunday, with FIFA taking possession of the stadium on Wednesday.