Messi-mania fuels a travel bargain. This airline just cut fares from Miami to Buenos Aires

Responding to soccer superstar Lionel Messi’s arrival in South Florida, Aerolineas Argentinas is offering new sharply discounted fares between Buenos Aires and Miami.

Argentina’s largest airline, state-owned Aerolineas Argentinas, said tickets are available for round-trip flights between Buenos Aires and Miami for $571. The fares are for economy class, include all taxes and fees, and are for travel between August 15, 2023 and December 10, 2023. The company said they may not be available on all flights. Reservations can be made now.

“I’ve never seen flights this cheap,” said Brian Byrnes, a Miami-based tech public relations executive who has been traveling between Buenos Aires and the United States for more than 20 years and has written travel guides about the country.

Buenos Aires-based travel agent Lucas Markowiecki said, “I’ve never seen a fare this low” between the two cities. Tangol, his travel agency which caters to soccer tourism has been around for 22 years, he said. Before the discount, round-trip fares averaged over $1,000.

Messi, the 2022 World Cup winner and seven-time Ballon d’Or, was formally announced on Sunday in an unveiling by Inter Miami at its current stadium in Fort Lauderdale. On Tuesday, he practiced for the first time with his new teammates in a session open to the media.

Aerolineas Argentinas often has discounted fares between the United States and Argentina but this promotion was spurred by the presence of Messi, according to an executive with the airline. This comes as Delta Airlines, LATAM, and American Airlines are increasing the number of flights to South America.

Asked by a Herald reporter in an interview on Tuesday if Messi’s arrival was an important factor in the new promotion, Marcelo Bottini, regional director for Aerolineas Argentinas, said “Yes, without a doubt.”

The new promotion is “leveraging Messi coming to Miami” said Bottini, who manages North America, Central America, Caribbean, Oceania, and Asia for the company.

Argentines of course have long had a lot of interest in traveling to Miami. “Now they have much more,” said the executive.

Bottini added that “For Argentines, Florida is no longer just for Disney, for the beaches, for the sun, or for the coast. Now it is also for Messi.”

His arrival has captivated the region. Social media posts have shown he, his wife, and children grocery shopping at Publix. Restaurants and bars are offering special beers and plates.

Argentine media are also covering Messi 24-7, said Markowiecki.

Focus on Messi has been unrelenting, said the travel agent. Children are already selling counterfeit Inter Miami jerseys on the streets of Buenos Aires, he observed.

“When he[Messi] was in Barcelona, he went out with friends for dinner, but he never appeared in Argentine media, said Markowiecki. “The Argentine media is giving him attention he has not seen before, showing every movement.”

If that continues, it could spur greater demand for tourism, said Markowiecki. “They will clearly need more flights between Buenos Aires and Miami”

Aerolineas Argentinas currently has nine flights from Miami to Buenos Aires, said Bottini, but that will increase to eleven in September, he noted, and continue to March 2024.

The airline is also looking for some of those flights to land at Aeroparque Jorge Newbery, an airport in downtown Buenos Aires, closer to where people live and the main tourist attractions instead of international airport Ezeiza. “Aeroparque is right in the middle of the city and easily accessible,” said Byrnes.

“We are still waiting for TSA approval,” for that, said Bottini, “but we have everything prepared.”

The executive also expects Argentines who travel to Miami visit other cities in the U.S. that have MLS teams, increasing tourism between the two countries.

“Many Argentines are soccer fanatics,” the airline executive noted. “They will look to go wherever the games are played, be it Dallas, Atlanta, or wherever.”