Lionel Messi will miss the 2026 Major League Soccer (MLS) All-Star Game for the second consecutive season but will not face suspension after the league appro...
Lionel Messi will miss the 2026 Major League Soccer (MLS) All-Star Game for the second consecutive season but will not face suspension after the league approved his absence following Argentina’s FIFA World Cup campaign.
Major League Soccer confirmed on Saturday that Messi and his Inter Miami teammate Rodrigo De Paul had been excused from participating in this year’s All-Star fixture.
The decision marks a change from last season, when Messi received a one-match suspension after failing to participate in the 2025 MLS All-Star Game. At the time, Inter Miami co-owner Jorge Mas criticised the punishment, describing it as “draconian” and saying the Argentine captain was “extremely upset.”
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MLS said its decision follows an agreement reached before the start of the 2026 season between the league and the MLS Players Association regarding players returning from the FIFA World Cup.
“Prior to the start of the 2026 season, Major League Soccer and the MLS Players Association agreed that upon a player’s exit from the World Cup competition, clubs would have individual conversations with each player to determine the appropriate rest and return to training and competition timeline,” the league said in a statement.
“Consistent with that agreement, Rodrigo De Paul and Lionel Messi will be excused from participating in the 2026 MLS All-Star Game.”
Messi and De Paul have not featured for Inter Miami since helping Argentina reach the FIFA World Cup final on July 19. Both players also missed the club’s recent MLS victories over the Chicago Fire and CF Montréal.
The league’s approach also aligns with an agreement reached last year between FIFPRO, the global players’ union, and FIFA, which provides for a mandatory 21-day rest period for professional footballers at the end of each season.
Messi and De Paul are among four players excused from this year’s showcase. Mbekezeli Mbokazi and Hugo Cuypers were also withdrawn, with Cuypers unavailable following his transfer to Monterrey.
The four players have been replaced in the MLS squad by Yannick Bright of Inter Miami, Andrés Cubas of the Vancouver Whitecaps, Guilherme of the Houston Dynamo and Philip Zinckernagel of the Chicago Fire.
This year’s MLS All-Star team will face the Liga MX All-Stars on Wednesday in Charlotte, North Carolina, with players including Son Heung-min, Thomas Müller and Tim Ream expected to feature.
