FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA – MAY 31: Lionel Messi #10 of Inter Miami in action against the Columbus Crew at Chase Stadium on May 31, 2025 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
Rumor has it organizers are worried about bad ticket sales for Inter Miami's opener against Egyptian Premier League guests Al Ahly in the FIFA Club World Cup this Saturday, set to kick off at 8 p.m. EST. But the frantic push to sell late tickets just shows how smart Florida's soccer fans are becoming.
Fans have wondered for many months whether Lionel Messi's cast of superstars would play in the Group Stage of a June event. Inter Miami's futures odds for the event sank as speculators thought about No. 10 skipping the opening dates, then perhaps making a token appearance in a Round-of-16 defeat.
Never mind all that. The game is on! Miami has announced its FIFA Club World Cup lineup with Messi captaining his full supporting squad of veteran soccer icons, from Sergio Busquets to Luis Suarez. Suddenly, those tickets for FIFA's Round 1 at Hard Rock Stadium are going way up in price.
Spread
- Inter Miami -0.25 (-102)
- Al Ahly +0.25 (-118)
Moneyline
- Inter Miami +125
- Al Ahly +195
- Draw +255
Total
- Over 2.75 (-108)
- Under 2.75 (-112)
The above data was collected on June 13, 2025, and may have changed since writing.
Inter Miami vs Al Ahly Betting Trends
- Inter Miami is 5-0-3 in matches outside MLS league play since Feb. 2.
- Inter Miami has scored 12 combined goals in its last three appearances.
- Totals have gone over in eight of Inter Miami's last nine matches.
- Al Ahly hasn't lost without a tiebreaker in its last nine matches.
Inter Miami vs Al Ahly Injury Reports
Inter Miami
- Midfielder David Ruiz is out with a hamstring strain.
- Midfielder Baltasar Rodriguez is questionable with a hamstring strain.
- Goalkeeper Drake Callender is out with a sports hernia.
- Midfielder Yannick Bright is out with a muscle injury.
- Defender Gonzalo Lujan is out with an undisclosed injury.
- Defender Jordi Alba is out with a muscle injury.
Al Ahly
- Forward Reda Slim is out with cartilage damage.
Inter Miami vs Al Ahly Predictions and Picks
Al Ahly could be down on its luck at a bad time. The suiting-up of Messi and Suarez is timed with Ronaldo turning down a gigantic offer to transfer to the Cairo team, leaving Saturday's underdog without a striker who compares to the Herons' scorers. Al Ahly will hope that Inter Miami's back line is still a liability.
What does Miami's manager, Javier Mascherano, plan to do about his team's poor defending in a FIFA tournament? It may be that the plan is to hoard possession in midfield, and play to aging keeper Oscar Ustari's strengths while not letting Al Ahly bombard the weak spot. "Drake Callender's ongoing absence because of a groin injury has kept (the 38-year-old) in goal," writes Ahmed Walid of The Athletic by way of the NYT's free preview of the Club World Cup. "Ustari hasn't been the most solid this season."
Miami's stars are too good at rising to the occasion to lose to "the other EPL" on worldwide TV. But with the back line still vulnerable to any attack, look for the over-total-goals wager to prevail this weekend.
