AS US president Donald Trump spoke about the ongoing conflict with Iran, Lionel Messi and his Inter Miami team-mates stood behind him.
And at the conclusion of his speech, Messi and his team-mates – including Luis Suarez – applauded Trump’s words.
As is customary in the United States, professional sports teams or individuals who win great honours are invited to the Oval Office.
Inter Miami became the MLS champion in 2025, which saw them get an invite from the president.
With Messi and the Inter Miami stars behind him, Trump gave an ultimatum to the Iranian Government.
The president also listed what he judged to be the successes of the US bombing campaign, specifically in destroying Iranian missiles, launchers and ships.
He said: “They’re tough, and they wanna fight.
“And they’re calling, and they’re saying: ‘How do we make a deal?’
“And I’m saying that ‘you’re being a bit late’.
“We want to fight more than they do.”
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Messi and team-mates like Luis Suarez applauded as the speech went on, with Trump saying: “We’re doing a great job. We’ve got the greatest military anyone’s ever seen.”
Though not all the the Inter Miami players appeared to be clapping during the speech.
Messi did not, however, have to spend the entire evening hearing about the war in the Middle East – a region of far greater concern to his rival Cristiano Ronaldo, who plays in Saudi Arabia.
Inter Miami were celebrated for their achievement before and after the impromptu speech.
During this meeting, David Beckham‘s franchise brought a jersey for the president, a commemorative trophy, and the championship cup.
Inter Miami were only founded in 2018 thanks to some razor sharp business acumen from Beckham.
Beckham joined the MLS as a player in the twilight of his career, but he made sure to get first option on an MLS franchise to be a part of his deal.
He made $255million over 5 years playing for LA Galaxy and secured the rights to buy Inter Miami for just $25m.
Then in 2023, Becks pulled off his greatest ever off-pitch coup by convincing Messi to up sticks from Barcelona.
