Will he or won’t he?
That’s the question on the minds of soccer fans hoping to see global superstar Lionel Messi play in Vancouver this week.
The star-studded Inter Miami CF is set to play Vancouver Whitecaps FC in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions Cup semi-final at BC Place on Thursday.
As of Tuesday morning, ticket prices on some of the major resale sites ranged from $88 to as much as $4,400.
“Demand is okay — not great — because a lot of fans are still not sure if he’s actually going to be here,” said Kingsley Bailey, general manager of Vancouver Ticket.
“You know what they say, once bitten, twice shy. There’s some demand because there’s a chance he might come, but it’s nowhere near the level that was last May.”
That is when Inter Miami left Messi and its other stars at home to avoid the long trip to Vancouver for a regular season MLS game, disappointing more than 50,000 fans, some of whom paid thousands of dollars for seats.
“This time, the price is all over the place, the range is huge, but I think that is reasonable. It’s because nobody knows for sure and nobody is going to know up until game time,” Bailey told 1130 NewsRadio.
“If I was a fan and contemplating going to the game, I’d wait until the last possible minute, when there can’t be any cancellations, and then buy. I wouldn’t take my chances.”
Last May, the Whitecaps heavily promoted an MLS match against Inter Miami “led by a contingent of former FC Barcelona stars including Lionel Messi,” leading to expectations by many that those stars would be playing.
When Messi was a no-show, upset fans were offered 50 per cent off food and beverages at BC Place and a ticket to a future game worth $35, though they could not choose the match or seat.
Inter Miami is expected to announce its travel squad Tuesday, ahead of Thursday’s match, but even if Messi makes the trip, there is no guarantee he will play many minutes at BC Place.
The CONCACAF Champions Cup semi-finals will be settled over two games — the first in Vancouver, the second at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on April 30.
The Whitecaps have only reached the semi-finals once before in 2017, falling to Mexico’s Tigres UANL.
The Tigres play Liga MX’s Cruz Azul on Wednesday in leg one of the other semi-final, with the second leg on May 1.
The winner of the CONCACAF Champions Cup will automatically qualify for the FIFA Club World Cup 2025.
