Inter Miami fans band together to restore vandalized Lionel Messi mural in Wynwood

Messi Mania got messy in Wynwood this week.

A Lionel Messi-themed mural painted last month by local artist Chris Moramarco and other members of Inter Miami’s Vice City 1896 supporters group was vandalized with purple paint early Wednesday morning.

Miami fans suspect the culprits are fans of MLS rival Orlando City, as purple is their team color and it was purple paint that was splattered across the mural, located at 55 N.W. 25 St, near the Veza Sur Brewing Company. The message “FL is Purple” was written on there, as well. Thankfully, Moramarco said, the vandals spared Messi’s face.

“They left paint can lids and there are surveillance cameras across the street, so we are trying to find out exactly who did it,” said Moramarco, 45, of South Miami. “We think it was probably Orlando fans who came down to watch Messi play Tuesday night and then drove down to Wynwood to splash paint on our mural.”

The Inter Miami vs Orlando City rivalry runs deep and could be in the spotlight again on Wednesday night in the Leagues Cup Round of 32 at DRV PNK Stadium. Miami already advanced with a pair of group stage victories and will play the winner of the Saturday night game between Orlando City and Mexican team Santos Laguna.

Moramarco learned of the vandalism Wednesday morning, and within hours, Vice City members began showing up ready to paint over the mess. By nightfall, 30 to 40 people were painting and by 4 a.m., it was good as new.

“The vandalism actually brought us together because this was a collaborative project and everyone wanted to help fix it,” he said. “It also drew even more attention to our mural, which was cool. The story got picked up by ESPN and Argentine media. We are not going to use any violence to retaliate. We want to keep it fun. Our way of dealing with it was to come together and be even stronger. We do hope we get to play Orlando on Wednesday. We would love to see Messi play against them.”

Moramarco, a Gables High grad who runs a creative marketing agency and has designed some Inter Miami merchandise, designed the original mural and more than 75 members of Vice City helped paint it. It was unveiled on June 24, Messi’s 36^th birthday, and they celebrated with music, food, fireworks and pink smoke bombs.

Messi is a native of Rosario, Argentina, which is also Moramarco’s hometown. He moved to Miami in 1991 when he was in middle school and is a diehard Messi fan. He traveled to Qatar for the 2022 World Cup and splurged on a $2,500 ticket for the Argentina vs. France final, which Argentina won in penalty kicks after a drama-filled match.

His seat was “in the nosebleed section,” but he and a friend finagled their way down to behind the goal and were able to watch the penalty kick shootout up close. Afterward, a Bangladeshi security guard they befriended at the stadium snagged them a piece of the net as a souvenir.

“I was there, in person, in Qatar watching Leo Messi lift that World Cup trophy, and six months later, to see him in that pink Inter Miami shirt playing at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, with photos of us cheering in the background…it’s unbelievable,” Moramarco said. “I still can’t really believe he is here. We had heard rumors, but I didn’t think it would happen. Once it did, I wanted to welcome him with a mural and it has brought all our members closer, especially after what happened this week.”

Vice City 1896 (the year the City of Miami was founded) is one of five official Inter Miami supporter groups and has 500 members.