Lionel Messi is known for letting his game do the talking. But apparently, some grudges don’t fade with time. The Argentinian maestro joined the Major League Soccer (MLS) side Inter Miami in 2023. However, in the 2025 season, he was involved in a controversial incident with the current MLS commissioner and former NFL vice president Don Garber. Recently, Garber shared his tidbits on his bond with Messi.

“He’s still mad at me,” said Garber in a discussion with Front Office Sports. We’re communicating a little bit more. But you know, I noticed a couple of things, and then I haven’t said this before, and it’s a pretty cool thing. When I left the NFL, Paul Tagliabue told me a couple of things. One of them was never go into a locker room. League people don’t belong in club locker rooms. And leave the officials alone…

“After the game, Cindy Cone, the president of US Soccer, and JT Batson, their CEO, and I went down to the officials’ locker room, and waited for Ismail [Elfath] to come out, one of our referees, and thanked him for officiating probably one of the most difficult games that he’ll ever officiate in his career. And I don’t know that Leo was that happy during that game. That’s why he is Messi. The guy has just this indefatigable energy, passion and just courage. And I’m not sure that he looks at me as being the guys that pick the officials. I don’t. But he’s got to complain to somebody.”

Don Garber worked for the NFL for around 16 years. But since 1999, he has been a part of Major League Soccer and has helped expand it from 10 to 30 teams. Garber stands as one of the pioneers of the league who is seemingly strict with the policies.

In July 2025, Lionel Messi and teammate Jordi Alba were voted by fans and media to represent Inter Miami at the 2025 MLS All-Star Game in Austin, Texas. However, due to the already congested schedule, Miami’s coaching staff chose to hold both players out of the exhibition match to rest. Messi in particular stayed behind in South Florida to focus on load management, explicitly confirming he was not injured but simply exhausted.

However, the decision didn’t quite bode well with the league’s policies. Major League Soccer has a strict, universal policy: any healthy player who skips the premier All-Star event without a league-approved medical exemption is automatically ineligible for their club’s next match. Commissioner Don Garber expressed frustration that the league wasn’t notified of the absences earlier. As a result, he suspended Messi and Alba for Inter Miami‘s next regular-season game against FC Cincinnati.

Lionel Messi’s club immediately fired back. Co-owner Jorge Mas, in particular, publicly blasted the league’s enforcement. He called the rule and punishment “frankly, draconian,” given the immense physical toll on veteran players.