Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami will kick off the 2025 Major League Soccer (MLS) season at home against New York City FC on February 22, as revealed in the league’s schedule released Thursday.
Messi, who helped Miami achieve the league’s best regular-season record last year, will aim for a stronger playoff run after the team’s early exit in 2024. The opener comes during a busy February for Inter Miami, as they also take on Kansas City in a two-legged CONCACAF Champions Cup series on February 18 and 25.
The 2025 season will see Inter Miami compete against Eastern Conference foes and several Western Conference teams, with notable clashes at San Jose, Houston, and Minnesota. Highlight matches include home games against Western powerhouses Dallas, Seattle, and defending MLS champions Los Angeles Galaxy, with the latter fixture set for August 16.
The Galaxy will begin their season a day later, hosting expansion team San Diego on February 23. San Diego’s debut marks MLS’s milestone 30th club in the league’s 30th season. Each team will play 34 matches, split evenly between home and away fixtures.
The league plans to honour its inaugural 1996 season with a special matchup on April 6, when DC United visits San Jose for a rematch of the first-ever MLS game. United will also play the Galaxy on July 12 in a recreation of the first MLS Cup final.
Other key dates in the 2025 season include the MLS All-Star Game in Austin on July 23 and a pause from June 15-24 to accommodate the FIFA Club World Cup and CONCACAF Gold Cup, both hosted in the United States. Inter Miami and the Seattle Sounders will represent MLS in the Club World Cup.
Additionally, the 2025 Leagues Cup, featuring MLS and LIGA MX teams, will take place from July 29 to August 31.
