Lionel Messi made a deeply emotional return to action for Inter Miami on Wednesday, days after burying his father, but it was not enough to keep his side alive in the Leagues Cup as they suffered a 3-2 defeat to Mexican side Club Leon.

The Argentina captain had flown back to Rosario over the weekend to attend the funeral of his father, Jorge Messi, who died last Saturday at the age of 68 after also serving as his son’s longtime agent and manager of his business affairs. Messi missed Miami’s previous group game against Monterrey while mourning, before returning to Florida on Tuesday night and coming on as a half time substitute against Leon to a huge ovation from fans inside Nu Stadium.

Earlier on Wednesday, Messi had shared an emotional tribute to his father on social media, admitting he was uncertain about his footballing future without him. He described the difficulty of playing through this year’s World Cup while his father battled illness, revealing that he had promised to reach the final so his father could watch, a promise he ultimately fulfilled when Argentina made it to the championship match before losing to Spain.

Despite Messi’s presence, Inter Miami could not hold on against Leon. Daniel Pinter had given the hosts a first half lead, but Daniel Arcila scored twice in the second half, including the winner in the eighty third minute, to send Leon through to the knockout stage. Yannick Bright also found the net for Miami, but it was not enough to prevent their first group stage elimination since the tournament’s expansion in 2023, a competition Miami won in its debut year and reached the final of last season before losing heavily to the Seattle Sounders.

With their Leagues Cup campaign over, Inter Miami will now turn their focus to MLS regular season action, with a significant clash against Eastern Conference leaders Nashville SC coming up this weekend.

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