Donald Trump highlights the key distinction between Messi and MLS legends

During Inter Miami's visit to the White House to celebrate their 2025 MLS Cup championship, U.S. President Donald Trump emphasized a notable difference between Lionel Messi and many other international stars who have played in the United States.

Lionel Messi and Inter Miami visited the White House to meet U.S. President Donald Trump, as part of the traditional ceremony held for championship teams after they won the 2025 MLS Cup title. At this event, Trump quickly highlighted the Argentine superstar's unique impact on the league, compared to many other international stars who have played in the U.S.

Since the league's early years, especially when David Beckham joined LA Galaxy in 2007 or during Zlatan Ibrahimovic's stint here in 2018, MLS has always attracted numerous world football legends. However, the U.S. President argued that Messi's ability to deliver a championship almost immediately is what sets him apart from many of his predecessors.

“We've had many great players come here, but they didn't win the championship. He did. He came and won right away,” Trump said to Messi during the press conference. “Leo, he came and achieved victory, which is very difficult and also very rare to see.”

Trump added: “That's why this is such a great honor. Honestly, he faced more pressure than anyone I know. He arrived as the world's best player, the club paid a huge sum, and with all that pressure, he still won. That's impressive, congratulations.”

Since joining the club in 2023, Messi has helped turn Inter Miami into a formidable force. Under his leadership, the team secured its first title, the 2023 Leagues Cup, followed by the 2024 MLS Supporters’ Shield, before completing a historic season with the MLS Cup championship last December.

In addition to bringing trophies to South Florida soccer, Messi also continuously set new milestones in MLS during the 2025 season. In February, he became the fastest player in league history to reach 40 goal contributions (goals or assists). By March, Messi set another record by becoming the first player to score multiple goals in more than four consecutive matches, with a total of 10 goals during that streak.

Records continued to be set in October when Messi became the first player to have nine matches with two or more goals in a single MLS regular season. With this outstanding performance, he won the Landon Donovan MLS MVP award for the second consecutive year, becoming the first player in league history to achieve this in back-to-back seasons.