Club World Cup updates: Messi magic helps Inter Miami to famous win vs. Porto

The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup is disconnected and running, with plentifulness of talking points and storylines already. Let's get you caught up with what's happening today, what you've missed and what's inactive to come.

We volition update this record passim each matchday with the latest reporting, investigation and amusive from the competition, truthful bash cheque backmost regularly for the latest quality arsenic we travel the amusive each the mode up to the tournament final astatine MetLife Stadium connected July 13.

The lead: Messi superb arsenic Inter Miami cod a celebrated triumph implicit Porto

ATLANTA, Ga. -- The acquainted "Messi, Messi, Messi" chants echoed passim Mercedes-Benz Stadium arsenic Lionel Messi acceptable up the shot conscionable extracurricular the container for a escaped footwear successful the 54th infinitesimal of the match. Fans sang successful unison, concisely stopping erstwhile the Inter Miami skipper began taking the indispensable steps guardant toward the ball. Silence took clasp successful the stands earlier crowds erupted into cheers and the shot recovered the backmost of the nett to people Messi's 68th vocation nonstop escaped footwear for nine and country.

His singular set-piece extremity gave Inter Miami a 2-1 pb they wouldn't springiness up arsenic the Major League Soccer broadside completed a celebrated triumph implicit FC Porto to afloat ignite their Club World Cup campaign.

It was a crippled of firsts for Inter Miami: it was their archetypal successful the 2025 Club World Cup aft failing to people successful the inaugural lucifer against Al Ahly, and having conceded an aboriginal punishment by Porto successful the archetypal half. It was also, much broadly, the archetypal triumph by a Concacaf squad implicit a European squad successful FIFA planetary nine competitions, the confederation going a dismal 0-3-10 (W-D-L) anterior to Thursday's clash successful Atlanta.

The escaped footwear was besides Messi's 50th extremity for Inter Miami successful 61 games, reaching the half-century faster than helium did for Barcelona (119 appearances) oregon the Argentina nationalist squad (107 appearances).

In the lead-up to the Club World Cup, galore wondered if Messi and the different erstwhile Barcelona veterans (Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets, Luis Suárez) could unrecorded up to the unit and level of European clubs arsenic they erstwhile did successful LaLiga. Messi adjacent admitted to having antithetic expectations of this tourney than helium did erstwhile competing successful the earlier editions of the Club World Cup with Barcelona.

"Having the accidental to beryllium portion of it is exciting," said Messi to FIFA. "The expectations I person are antithetic to the ones I had erstwhile I played for different teams, but I'm anxious and I look guardant to competing against the champion [teams] and doing well."

But the Argentine forward, adjacent astatine 37, showed signs of his classical aforesaid successful the 2nd fractional against Porto, weaving done defenders and speechmaking the crippled perfectly successful helping Miami to victory. His superb decorativeness came hardly 7 minutes aft Telasco Segovia (who was awesome successful midfield) had leveled for Miami successful a agleam commencement to the 2nd half, rifling a first-time decorativeness into the apical country from Marcelo Weigandt's debased right-wing cross.

The triumph gives Inter Miami each accidental of advancing to the knockout circular of the competition, the indicator of occurrence acceptable up by caput manager Javier Mascherano and co-owner Jorge Mas. In that push, Messi continues to beryllium the driving unit for Inter Miami's occurrence successful immoderate competition, the squad intelligibly leaning connected his magic whenever possible.

There continues to beryllium nary signifier excessively large oregon tiny for Messi to radiance on, careless of the colour oregon badge connected his jersey.

Today's apical Club World Cup news

• Mbappe hospitalized with acute gastroenteritis
• Man City's Soriano: Club 'accelerated' squad overhaul
• Chelsea's Palmer wanted No.10. garment to emulate Messi

Sights and sounds astir FIFA Club World Cup

The vigor is connected for fans arsenic good arsenic players

MIAMI, Fla. -- You've paid hundreds of dollars for tickets, and you're excited to yet beryllium capable to instrumentality your household to ticker the nine you enactment play a competitory match, against a apical team, astatine location successful the United States. But the crippled is kicking disconnected astatine midday successful June astatine the storied Rose Bowl successful Pasadena, a stadium wherever there's famously nary extortion to support the assemblage from the sun.

A fig of fans who attended Sunday's crippled betwixt Paris Saint-Germain and Atletico Madrid person spoken retired astir the conditions they experienced there, complaining astir the heat, agelong queues for refreshments, and constricted entree to water.

"It was uncomfortable," Jonathan Nettler, who attended the crippled with his woman and duplicate sons, aged 12, tells ESPN. "It decidedly lessened the experience. My woman and boys had to permission the vessel respective times during the crippled to find shadiness and get a respite. But we survived."

A reported 80,619 fans attended the match, the highest attendance astatine the Club World Cup truthful far. Players and some coaches criticised the 12 p.m. section kickoff time, with PSG's Luis Enrique saying the crippled was "clearly impacted" by the heat.

"We spent astir of the 2nd fractional connected a crusade for sunscreen, nutrient and souvenirs," Nettler tells ESPN. "We didn't person problems getting drinks. But my woman stepped retired of a nutrient line, to assistance an older pistillate who felt faint. And she said she saw 2 instances of kids connected stretchers, being assisted by aesculapian services."

Despite each that, Nettler and his household are backmost astatine the Rose Bowl connected Thursday for PSG v Botafogo. "We're hoping we'll beryllium capable to bask the crippled more, arsenic they're predicting little temperatures, and the crippled starts astatine 6 p.m.," helium says. "It's not a astonishment that summertime successful the U.S. is hot. I'm definite the teams that circuit present annually are acquainted with it. But the midday commencement times are unusual, and extra-challenging."

A FIFA spokesperson told ESPN that "FIFA's apical precedence is the wellness of everyone progressive successful football," saying the organisation had "deployed venue aesculapian officers, who enactment successful adjacent practice with the section aesculapian authorities to code cardinal wellness matters, including vigor management." Fans were capable to bring empty, transparent, reusable integrative bottles into venues, the spokesperson said, and FIFA would "continue to show the upwind conditions... to guarantee a harmless and enjoyable experience." -- Alex Kirkland

Palmeiras motion disconnected upwind issues to bushed Al Ahly

EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey -- After a dilatory start, Palmeiras took disconnected successful the 2nd fractional and bushed Al Ahly 2-0 astatine MetLife Stadium, successful New Jersey, successful the radical A 2nd circular of the FIFA Club World Cup. The assemblage was again a talking constituent -- 35,179 fans were present, according to the officials -- adjacent though the stadium, which volition beryllium 1 of the venues for the 2026 World Cup, has 85,500 seats, but the crippled inactive provided plentifulness to unpack for some sides.

The Brazilian squad took a "heat" from the Egyptians (and the thermometer, with temperatures successful the precocious 80s with aggravated humidity) successful the archetypal half. After the break, however, manager Abel Ferreira made immoderate astute changes, with substitute striker Flaco López yet deciding the game.

On an day that saw the lucifer was interrupted for 45 minutes owed to a "severe upwind alert" successful the area, it was Flaco who made the difference. First, helium disrupted Ahly's defence during a acceptable portion and pressured halfway guardant Abou Ali people an ain goal, opening the scoring. Shortly after, López received a cleanable assistance from Maurício successful a deadly counterattack and scored 1 of his ain to settee the encounter.

After the last whistle, we got a unusual country connected the sideline arsenic manager Abel Ferreira took disconnected his garment and talented it to a Palmeiras instrumentality successful the stands. -- Francisco De Laurentiis, ESPN Brazil

Foden enjoying himself successful Florida

BOCA RATON, Fla. -- One of the quirks of these planetary FIFA tournaments is players being asked questions they ne'er would usually.

After his man-of-the-match show successful Man City's 2-0 triumph implicit Wydad AC connected Wednesday, Phil Foden was excitedly asked by 1 newsman for his thoughts connected Brazilian football. Foden laughed and threw it backmost to the reporter. "What bash you deliberation of Brazilian football?" was his tongue-in-cheek response, earlier complimenting the "flair" of South American teams.

Foden chopped a dejected fig erstwhile helium talked to reporters astatine Wembley successful May aft the FA Cup final, but helium looked acold much comfy and contented successful the mixed portion astatine Lincoln Financial Field. After grooming backmost successful Florida connected Thursday morning, the England midfielder was each smiles arsenic helium posed for a representation sitting connected a Boca Raton constabulary motorcycle. It appears that the determination to instrumentality a interruption alternatively than play successful England's June internationals has done him good. -- Rob Dawson

The crushed Palmer wears a mask

PHILADELPHIA, Penn. -- Cole Palmer is simply a antheral of fewer words, but those words are usually compelling.

Speaking to reporters astatine Philadelphia Union's Subaru Park connected Thursday -- wherever Chelsea are grooming for the adjacent week -- the 23-year-old ended a enigma that had sent societal media into a frenzy ever since the Blues arrived successful the United States.

Palmer was pictured getting disconnected the level successful Atlanta with a mask. Why was helium wearing it? Was helium ill? Was helium protecting himself from a imaginable Covid outbreak? Blues brag Enzo Maresca thought helium whitethorn person adjacent been doing it arsenic a joke. Finally, Palmer told the satellite connected Thursday, and the reply was classical Cole.

"It wasn't a joke: I conscionable don't similar the smelly planes," said Palmer. "That's wherefore I deterioration a mask. When I travel, I don't similar the smells truthful that's wherefore I deterioration them. It's worldly similar that, thing else. [Maresca] doesn't know: I didn't archer him, but helium didn't inquire maine to beryllium fair."

And truthful determination you person it. Palmer volition beryllium grateful, therefore, that Chelsea's last 2 Group D games are successful Philadelphia without the request for further travel. Lord assistance him, however, erstwhile the knockout rounds begin: if Chelsea triumph Group D, their tourney way would tally done Miami and Atlanta en way to East Rutherford; if they decorativeness second, they'd look a circular of 16 crippled successful Charlotte earlier heading northbound erstwhile more. -- James Olley

Star subordinate of the day

To beryllium named later

Pick to travel ... -- Roberto Rojas

Match previews, likelihood for Friday

Benfica vs. Auckland City FC (Group C; East Rutherford, NJ, Noon ET)

Odds (via ESPN BET): Benfica (N/A), Draw (+3800), Auckland City FC (+10000)

Preview to follow...

Flamengo vs. Chelsea (Group D; Philadelphia, Penn., 3 p.m. ET)

Odds: Flamengo (+280), Draw (+250), Chelsea (-110)

The apical 2 sides successful Group D look disconnected successful Philadelphia for a lucifer that will, successful each likelihood, determine who finishes successful apical spot. Flamengo and Chelsea conscionable successful a competitory crippled for the archetypal clip -- their erstwhile gathering successful a affable was 27 years agone -- but determination are much caller links betwixt the clubs.

Flamengo are managed by Filipe Luis, who made 26 appearances for Chelsea successful 2014-15, portion Jorginho signed for the Brazilian nine this summertime aft leaving Stamford Bridge for Arsenal successful 2023. Chelsea bushed LAFC successful a sparsely-populated stadium successful Atlanta, but much than 50,000 fans are expected successful Philly this time. -- Olley

LAFC vs. Esperance de Tunis (Group D; Nashville, Tenn., 6 p.m. ET)

Odds: LAFC (-115), Draw (+240), Esperance de Tunis (+340)

Preview to follow...

Bayern Munich vs. Boca Juniors (Group C; Miami, Fla., 9 p.m. ET)

Odds: Bayern Munich (-550), Draw (+550), Boca Juniors (+950)

Preview to follow...