“He’s the guy” - Captain America actor Anthony Mackie shares Lionel Messi admiration as he makes vow to attend Inter Miami game

Anthony Mackie has revealed that he is a fan of Lionel Messi. The Captain America actor stated that his children were also interested in football and had been attending games.

Speaking to Clarin, Mackie stated that he was a fan of Messi and his boys also looked up to the Argentine. He added that his children want to see more superstars of the game playing in the United States and said via GOAL:

“Everybody that knows soccer loves Messi. He’s the guy. My boys, all four of them play soccer. They know much more about soccer than I do, so there are certain players that they have their jerseys and they look up to. They are really into the idea of soccer becoming bigger in the States – with MLS – and taking them to games so they can experience it.”

Mackie starred in Marvel's Captain America: Brave New World, where he played Captain America and was also the executive producer. He will be delighted with Lionel Messi's interest rising in the United States as well, as the Inter Miami star was doing Marvel-inspired celebrations on the pitch last season.

Chris McGowan credits Lionel Messi for growth of MLS

Chris McGowan, head of the club performance and optimization group at MLS, has credited Lionel Messi for bringing in more audience. He believes that the Argentine moving to Inter Miami in 2023 has seen a constant rise in interest in football in the United States and said via ESPN:

"He's definitely helped put us in front of a global audience, and he's definitely piqued the interest of sports fans in our country. Our clubs have done an unbelievable job of taking advantage of that and understanding that players don't play forever. We have the best ever playing in our league, so we got to be on our toes to be able to take advantage of it."

"People are now seeing just an awesome environment when they go to our games across the league. The crowds are energetic. There's a lot of great things happening in the venue. It's just a fun time on a Saturday night and people are really taking notice of that."

Lionel Messi is in contract talks with Inter Miami over a new deal as he looks to extend his stay. The Barcelona legend helped them win the Leagues Cup in 2023 and followed it up with the MLS Supporters' Shield in 2024.