Lionel Messi-Led Inter Miami Nets $650M for Big Soccer Stadium

Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami CF secured a $650 million financing package from J.P. Morgan Chase to complete the construction of its soccer stadium.

The Miami Freedom Park will include a 25,000-seat stadium at 1400 Northwest 37th Avenue, east of Miami International Airport. Future phases of the Arquitectonica-designed development will include a 750-room hotel, 400,000 square feet of office space, and 600,000 square feet of retail space. 

The financing package includes a five-year, $450 million senior construction loan for the stadium, according to a source with knowledge of the transaction. A $200 million senior term loan and revolving credit facility will go toward refinancing the team’s existing debt and operations.

The soccer team has been playing at the 19,100-seat Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale since its inaugural season in 2020. 

In 2021, billionaire brothers Jorge and Jose Mas purchased a majority stake in the MLS team. Former soccer superstar David Beckham, who co-founded the team in 2018, remained an investor. 

In 2022, the owners secured a 99-year ground lease from the City of Miami to replace the 58-acre site on 37th Avenue, which housed a public golf course, with the $1 billion development. The joint venture promised to fund the construction privately and remediate another 131 acres of contaminated soil around the project.

The owners broke ground in 2023, the year Messi joined. Ares Management (ARES), which had supplied $150 million in preferred equity in 2021, provided an additional $75 million for the early parts of construction, according to Bloomberg. 

A spokesperson for J.P. Morgan Chase declined to comment. Representatives for Inter Miami CF did not respond to requests for comment. 

Julia Echikson can be reached at jechikson@commercialobserver.com.