Sporting Kansas City vs. Inter Miami CF
2024 MLS Regular Season | Match 8
Saturday, April 13 | 7:30 p.m. CT (7:40 kickoff)
GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium | Kansas City, MO
Broadcast Schedule:
Apple TV | MLS Season Pass
English Radio | Sports Radio 810 WHB
Spanish Radio | La Grande 1340 AM
Satellite Radio | SiriusXM FC and App Ch. 999
Tickets | Match Hub | Know Before You Go | 5 Things | By the Numbers | Tune In on Apple TV | Pub Partners | SKC App | MatchCenter
Sporting Kansas City is set for one of the most momentous nights in KC soccer history when the team plays host to Inter Miami CF at 7:30 p.m. CT on Saturday at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
A limited number of tickets for the marquee match-up are available online at Ticketmaster.com and the historic occasion is expected to draw a capacity crowd of more than 72,000 fans, setting a new attendance record for the sport in the state of Missouri. Ticket holders are encouraged to purchase parking in advance and to arrive early with parking lots opening at 3 p.m. on Saturday. Soccer Celebration at the Ford Tailgate District will open at 3:30 p.m. and fans can begin accessing seats when gates open at 5:30 p.m.
Home to the back-to-back Super Bowl champions Kansas City Chiefs and an upcoming host site for CONMEBOL Copa America 2024 and FIFA World Cup 2026, GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium will host its first MLS match in more than 15 years. Sporting KC played over 200 matches – including the 2004 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final – at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium during the club’s first 12 seasons from 1996-2007 and last played inside the venue in 2010 for the team’s unforgettable victory over Manchester United.
Notably, Saturday's showdown will be held on the anniversary of the club's inaugural match and the stadium's first MLS match on April 13, 1996. Five players from the 3-0 win over Colorado will be recognized pre-match on Saturday with Sean Bowers, Diego Gutierrez, Matt McKeon, Vitalis "Digital" Takawira and Scott Uderitz joining a group of 15 additional former players all in attendance for Saturday's festivities.
Led by co-owner David Beckham - who appeared in the most recent MLS match at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on Sept. 13, 2008 - Miami’s roster features the four most accomplished newcomers to Major League Soccer in the past year with Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba reunited after winning the FIFA Club World Cup and UEFA Champions League as teammates for FC Barcelona from 2014-2020.
Messi, the consensus best player in the world currently, won his record eighth Ballon d’Or earlier this year and is the only two-time recipient of the Golden Ball as the top performer at a FIFA World Cup, earning the honor again in 2022 after captaining Argentina to the title with seven goals – including two in a historic final against France – during the tournament. Messi has scored in each of his last three MLS matches and has recorded four goals and four assists in four regular season appearances this year, tying him for second in MLS with eight goal contributions.
The 36-year-old superstar led Inter Miami to the Leagues Cup title last summer, winning tournament MVP as the competition's top scorer with 10 goals, and a runners-up finish in the 2023 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. This year, Miami sits second in the Eastern Conference as the highest scoring team in Major League Soccer - led by Suarez with five goals in his last five MLS matches -- however fell 5-2 on aggregate to CF Monterrey in the 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup quarterfinals after a 3-1 loss in Mexico on Wednesday.
After entering Major League Soccer as an expansion team in 2020, Inter Miami CF travels to Kansas City for the first time in club history. The only previous meeting between the two sides took place on Sept. 9, 2023 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida with the home side prevailing 3-2 courtesy of a Leo Campana brace.
Daniel Salloi and Alan Pulido each scored in the fixture, and Salloi is now set to make his 200th MLS appearance for Sporting on Saturday. The 27-year-old had 96 goal contributions (58 goals, 38 assists) for the club in all competitions, one shy of tying Chris Klein for fourth most in team history.
Sporting's attack - which has generated 10 goals in the past four matches - has been sparked by the introduction of striker Willy Agada into the starting lineup. The 24-year-old Nigerian has scored or assisted in each of Sporting's last three matches and now has 12 goals in 11 regular season home starts since joining the club, highlighted by a two-goal performance in last weekend's 3-3 draw against Portland.
The draw kicked off a three-game homestand for Sporting Kansas City as the club looks to continue progressing up the Western Conference table early in a campaign in which the team has trailed for a total of 17 minutes this season - fewest in MLS - and lost only once through the first seven matches.
Reigning MLS Referee of the Year Victor Rivas will be the match official for Saturday's showdown, which will be available to watch on Apple TV for MLS Season Pass subscribers in addition to radio coverage on Sports Radio 810 WHB, La Grande 1340 AM, SiriusXM FC and SiriusXM App Channel 999. Pub partners in the Sporting Pub Network will also show all of the action, including a watch party at No Other Pub in the Kansas City Power and Light District.
