Lionel Messi has been the most visible superstar in Major League Soccer since joining American club Inter Miami in the summer of 2023, and as such his surprise absence from the 2025 MLS All-Star game came as a shock.

Inter Miami's Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba will not play in the 2025 MLS All-Star Game, MLS announced Wednesday. They were the vote leaders at their positions.

Messi and Alba were Inter Miami’s All-Star selections, but per MLS, they will not take part in the game set to be played on Wednesday in Austin, Texas.