Lionel Messi becomes most decorated player in football history

In just his seventh appearance for Inter Miami, Lionel Messi has won yet another trophy.

Messi and Inter Miami won Leagues Cup 2023 on Saturday night via a penalty shootout against SC Nashville. The shootout went to 11 rounds of penalties before Nashville goalkeeper Elliot Panccino had his penalty attempt saved by Inter Miami’s Drake Callender.

With his latest hardware, Messi is now the most decorated player in soccer history, having won 44 trophies in his career dating back to 2004.

The 36-year-old opened the scoring for Inter Miami with a scintillating strike in the 23rd minute, extending his streak of games with a goal to seven. He also converted Inter Miami’s first penalty in the game’s shootout.

The Leagues Cup will join a slew of other hardware in his trophy case, including 10 La Liga titles, four Champions League wins, seven Copa Del Reys, eight Spanish Super Cups, three FIFA Club World Cups, three UEFA Super Cups, the FIFA World Cup, the Finalissima, the Copa America, an Olympic Gold, a U20 World Cup, two Ligue 1 titles and one Trophée de Champions. 

Messi broke the deadlock with longtime former teammate Dani Alves, who had also claimed 43 trophies during his illustrious career.

With a Leagues Cup already checked off so early into his tenure with his new club, the Argentine will look to help the team get back into the playoff race in the MLS. He joins an Inter Miami squad that sits dead last in the league table, with 18 points in 22 games.