Seth Romsa

Overseas leagues have come to an end with the conclusion of European Cup finals that took place these past two weeks, ending with Manchester City achieving something not seen since 1999.

City capped off an incredible domestic double — achieved after winning the Premier League and FA Cup — by finishing off Inter Milan in the Champions League Final on Saturday to claim the first treble for an English team since Manchester United achieved the same feat in 1999.

That caps off a long, expensive rebuild for Pep Guardiola who now moves into a debate for the greatest manager ever, winning his second treble after achieving the same accomplishment in his first season at Barcelona in 2009.

He becomes the first manager ever to win two trebles in the men’s game, moving him to potentially the best manager ever conversation — after just 14 years at the helm of three different clubs.

I feel this moves him into a dead heat with Sir Alex Ferguson, who has not been at the helm for a decade after one of the most successful careers with Manchester United.

He was finally able to win it without Messi, who ended up making his own headlines this week.

Messi’s announcement came last Wednesday, making the move to Inter Miami to join Major League Soccer after leaving Paris Saint-Germain on a free (as a free agent) at the end of the season.

He turned down a more than $1 billion offer to move to the Saudi Pro League, which would have been the largest contract in sports history, in favor of the MLS.

As well as moving west instead of east, he’s rumored to be earning revenue from Apple for those who subscribe for extra MLS action on Apple TV and revenue from Adidas as well.

With his deal he’s one of the largest names to come to the MLS, alongside the likes of David Beckham, Thierry Henry and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Messi is one of many successful European league players to make the transition into the United States after long careers, making his way to play in his first game at the likely age of 36 after his birthday later this month.

He is expected to make his debut in July, heading to a team that is at the bottom of the Eastern Conference of the MLS standings.

Will Messi make an impact and bring more attention to the sport in the United States?

I believe so.

His impact comes at the right time, bringing excitement to the sport just three years before the USA, Mexico and Canada are set to host the World Cup in 2026.

Messi’s impact on ticket sales already has sent prices skyrocketing on third party sites, surging 1,000% from as low as $29 all the way up to $329 for the cheapest tickets.

I believe that the continual growth of the sport due to Messi’s arrival will trickle down to the lower levels, hopefully helping make the sport a priority and a more viewed sport in a country that has always put soccer on the back burner.