The Seattle Sounders outscored opponents 15-2 en route to winning the 2025 Leagues Cup.
With the 2025 Leagues Cup title, the Sounders have won their ninth trophy in 17 seasons.
Luis Suarez was involved in a postgame kerfuffle in an ugly postgame scene between Inter Miami and Seattle Sounders players.
The Seattle Sounders won the 2025 Leagues Cup tournament, topping Messi and Inter Miami, 3-0, in the final on Sunday, Aug. 31.
Seattle’s Osaze De Rosario scored in the 26th minute, Álex Roldán scored a penalty kick goal in the 84th minute, and Seattle native Paul Rothrock added another goal in the 89th minute to send Sounders fans at Seattle’s Lumen Field into a ruckus.
“I beat Messi in a final,” De Rosario said in an Apple TV postgame interview. “It’s a dream come true.”
With the 2025 Leagues Cup title, the Sounders have won their ninth trophy in 17 seasons — a haul that includes every possible North American trophy an MLS club can win — and are 5-0 on their home pitch in finals matches.
Seattle outscored their six Leagues Cup opponents 15-2 to win the regional tournament between MLS and Liga MX clubs. Inter Miami, meanwhile, suffered its first scoreless outing in its 16th Leagues Cup match.
Messi and Inter Miami, who won the first Leagues Cup in 2023, missed several prime opportunities to tie the match in the second half.
Messi overpowered a shot near the net in the 50th minute of the match, sending it into the stands despite a cheeky pass from Luis Suarez into the box.
Inter Miami’s Tadeo Allende also missed a chance to tie it in the 60th minute, but he misfired to the outside of the left post.
“Tonight just wasn’t his night, maybe. I mean that happens in sports,” Seattle coach Brian Schmetzer said. “He’s a superstar, and he deserved all the accolades that I can give him and people have given him. But tonight our collective was just a little bit better than him. … We outdueled them.”
Inter Miami, a club that boastfully prides itself on title chasing, failed to capitalize on its third opportunity to win a title this season. They also fell short in the Concacaf Champions Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup earlier this year.
“We had our chances to score. We couldn’t. The only thing that I can say, congratulations Seattle for being the champions,” Inter Miami coach Javier Mascherano said after the loss. “Now, we have to look the future. We have many games coming for the regular season. We are looking to finish as high as possible in the [league] and try to win the MLS Cup.”
Suarez put Seattle’s Obed Vargas in a headlock, while Sergio Busquets punched Vargas to start the conflict. Suarez also appeared to spit on a Seattle staff member during the sequence.
Tensions eventually were settled as both clubs remained on the pitch for the postgame trophy celebration.
Messi will join the Argentina national team for what could be his final match in his home country, when Argentina hosts Venezuela in Buenos Aires during a World Cup qualifying match on Sept. 4. Argentina will also visit Ecuador on Sept. 9.
Messi’s next match with Inter Miami to continue the MLS regular season is at Charlotte FC on Sept. 13.
Watch the Leagues Cup final on MLS Season Pass
Seattle Sounders vs. Inter Miami Leagues Cup final highlights
Seattle 3, Inter Miami 0: Paul Rothrock scores goal to send Sounders into frenzy
Seattle 2, Inter Miami 0: Álex Roldán scores penalty goal
The Seattle Sounders are going to win Leagues Cup. Álex Roldán scored a penalty kick in the 84th minute to double their lead over Messi and Inter Miami. The opportunity arose after Inter Miami’s Yannick Bright dove toward the feet of Georgi Minoungou in the 82nd minute.
Seattle 1, Inter Miami 0: Oscar Ustari saves shot by Paul Rothrock
Seattle’s Paul Rothrock nearly secured the Leagues Cup title to the Sounders, but Inter Miami goalkeeper Oscar Ustari was able to save the shot in the 73rd minute.
Seattle 1, Inter Miami 0: Tadeo Allende misses shot in front of net
Inter Miami’s Tadeo Allende could only hold his face in despair after missing a shot in front of the net in the 60th minute. Allende received a stellar assist from Luis Suarez, but misfired his shot to the outside of the left post. It’s the second opportunity Inter Miami has missed in close range in the second half.
Seattle 1, Inter Miami 0: Lionel Messi misses shot in front of the net
Messi made a cut in front of the net, received a pass from Luis Suarez, and misfired over the net in the 50th minute. It was a golden opportunity missed by Messi, who fired the shot inside of gracefully kicking a goal into the net.
Seattle 1, Inter Miami 0: Luis Suarez misses shot over net
Inter Miami is playing with better focus offensively, but Luis Suarez missed a left boot from the right side of the net in the 49th minute.
Seattle 1, Inter Miami 0: Messi fires shot into the stands
Messi took an opportunity to shoot toward the net, but his long shot from outside the box soared into the stands at Lumen Field in the 43rd minute. Messi took the shot several minutes after a no-call foul.
Seattle 1, Inter Miami 0: Jesús Ferreira misses shot off the post
Seattle nearly doubled its lead, but Jesús Ferreira’s shot ricocheted off the right post in the 40th minute.
Seattle 1, Inter Miami 0: Inter Miami unable to convert
Inter Miami nearly had an opportunity after a corner kick from Messi, but Yannick Bright was unable to connect on his shot after a hectic sequence in the 31st minute.
Seattle 1, Inter Miami 0: Osaze De Rosario scores goal to take lead
Seattle’s Osaze De Rosario scored a goal, converting a header inside the box sent by Álex Roldán in the 26th minute. The Sounders have the early lead over Messi and Inter Miami.
Inter Miami 0, Seattle 0: Messi unable to take shot inside the box
Inter Miami’s first chance inside the box saw Messi take a quick tumble after colliding into Seattle defender Obed Vargas inside the box, trying to retrieve a pass from Luis Suarez. Messi quickly got up after the sequence in the 11th minute.
Inter Miami 0, Seattle 0: Osaze De Rosario misses early header
Seattle’s Osaze De Rosario missed an early opportunity in the third minute, failing to convert on a header in front of the net.
Lumen Field set for Leagues Cup final
At least 60,000 fans were expected at Lumen Field in Seattle for the Leagues Cup final. Here are some of the pregame scenes before the match.
Messi warms up before the Leagues Cup final
Messi arrives to Leagues Cup final
What time is the Seattle Sounders vs. Inter Miami Leagues Cup final?
The match is available to live stream on MLS Season Pass via Apple TV, and the Apple TV+ channel on Amazon Prime, Xfinity and DirecTV. The match is also available in Spanish on Univision and TUDN.
Where to watch Leagues Cup 2025 final on TV and live stream?
The match begins at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. in Seattle and 9 p.m. in Argentina) at Lumen Field in Seattle.
Is Messi playing tonight?
Yes, Messi will play. He is in Inter Miami’s starting lineup for the match.
Seattle Sounders vs. Inter Miami starting lineups
Seattle Sounders vs. Inter Miami: Leagues Cup betting odds
Seattle is the favorite to win the Leagues Cup final. Here are the betting odds during regulation, according to BETMGM.
Seattle: +105
Draw: +240
Inter Miami: +195
Over/under: 2.5 goals
Seattle Sounders vs. Inter Miami Leagues Cup prediction
Inter Miami 3, Seattle Sounders 2: Lionel Messi scores two goals, Luis Suarez adds another, and Inter Miami hoists the Leagues Cup trophy after a thriller in Seattle. While the Sounders have been one of the best clubs in MLS since the Club World Cup, Messi returned to form from a hamstring injury and should propel Inter Miami to their third trophy together. — Safid Deen, Lionel Messi reporter.
Seattle Sounders vs. Inter Miami preview
Seattle has outscored their Leagues Cup opponents 13-2 en route to the final, while losing just once despite three draws in their last 14 matches across all competitions.
Inter Miami has two losses in their last 14 matches overall, and navigated Messi’s injury to beat Club Necaxa, Pumas UNAM and Tigres UANL before he returned to beat Orlando for the first time this season last Wednesday.
“We know the rival very well; they’ve had a great tournament and scored many goals. With their fans behind them, they’ll be eager to win, just like us,” Inter Miami’s Rodrigo De Paul, also Messi’s World Cup champion teammate, said before the match.
Flashback: Inter Miami wins 2023 Leagues Cup highlights
Messi scored an early goal, and Inter Miami outlasted Nashville SC in penalty kicks to win the 2023 Leagues Cup title shortly after his arrival to MLS and the U.S.
Messi to join Argentina after Leagues Cup final
Messi will play with Argentina in a World Cup qualifying match against Venezuela in Buenos Aires on Sept. 4. The match could be one of the last matches Messi plays in his home country, with no other matches scheduled in the next year.
“It’s going to be a very, very special match for me because it’s the last qualifying match,” Messi said after the Orlando City match. “I don’t know if there will be friendlies or more matches after [Venezuela], but it is a very special match, so my family will be there with me: my wife, my children, my parents, my siblings. We’re going to live it like that. I don’t know what will happen next.”
Messi, 38, has yet to declare he will play with the defending champions in the next World Cup hosted by the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
Messi upcoming schedule with Inter Miami and Argentina
Sept. 4: Argentina vs. Venezuela (World Cup qualifying)
Sept. 9: Ecuador vs. Argentina (World Cup qualifying)
Sept. 13: Charlotte FC vs. Inter Miami, 7:30 p.m. (MLS regular season)
Sept. 16: Inter Miami vs. Seattle Sounders, 7:30 p.m. (MLS regular season)
Sept. 20: Inter Miami vs. D.C. United, 7:30 p.m. (MLS regular season)
Sept. 24: New York City FC vs. Inter Miami, 7:30 p.m. (MLS regular season)
Sept. 27: Toronto FC vs. Inter Miami, 4:30 p.m. (MLS regular season)
Sept. 30: Inter Miami vs. Chicago Fire, 7:30 p.m. (MLS regular season)