Messi vs. Ronaldo match on Feb. 1 headlines Inter Miami preseason Saudi Arabia tour

The latest, and possibly last, chapter of the Lionel Messi vs. Cristiano Ronaldo rivalry will unfold in Saudi Arabia on Feb. 1, 2024, as Inter Miami announced Monday night that it will play a pair of games against top Saudi teams in the Riyadh Season Cup as part of the club’s first international tour.

Inter Miami will play Al-Hilal at the Kingdom Arena on Jan. 29 at 1 p.m. ET and three days later, on Feb. 1, will play against Ronaldo’s Al Nassr FC team.

Al-Hilal has won 66 titles and sits atop the table in league play. The team is coached by former Sporting CP player and manager Jorge Jesus, and boasts stars such as Neymar (who is injured and unavailable), Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Rúben Neves, Aleksandar Mitrovic, Kalidou Koulibaly and Malcom.

Al Nassr is in second place in the Saudi Pro League standings behind Al-Hilal and Ronaldo is the league’s leading goal scorer this season. The team, coached by Portuguese manager Luís Castro, also features Sadio Mané and Aymeric Laporte.

After playing in Saudi Arabia, Inter Miami will travel to Hong Kong for a Feb. 4 game against a Hong Kong all-star team. That game had already been announced last week. Miami will kick off its preseason on Jan. 19 with a road game against the El Salvador national team in San Salvador. MLS preseason camp opens Jan. 10.

“This is another major opportunity to create lasting relationships with passionate fans. We are excited to connect with new supporters in Saudi Arabia, and also hope people all over the world will be tuning in to see a pair of dream matches like these,” said Xavier Asensi, Inter Miami chief business officer.

“These matches will offer important tests for our team, which will benefit us as we approach the new season. We’re excited for our group to get the chance to go up against teams with as much quality as Al-Hilal and Al Nassr,” said Inter Miami sporting director Chris Henderson.

Saudi promoters had already announced the Inter Miami vs. Al Nassr game a few weeks ago and billed it as “The Last Dance”. Messi is 36 and Ronaldo is 38, so it will likely be the last time they face each other. Inter Miami initially refuted the Saudi report, saying it was premature, but on Monday confirmed the Saudi tour.

The Messi vs Ronaldo rivalry is one of the greatest in sports history, and arguments continue as to who is the better player. Between 2008 and 2017 one or the other won the Ballon d’Or trophy as world’s top player. Ronaldo has 612 million Instagram followers and Messi has 493 million.

Messi and Ronaldo have faced each other 35 times in their careers, with Messi claiming 16 wins to 10 by Ronaldo, and nine ties between them. In those matches, Messi has scored 21 goals and 12 assists, while Ronaldo has 20 goals and one assist.

Messi last played against Ronaldo in January 2023 when Paris Saint-Germain played against the Saudi All-Stars. Both players scored.

Tickets for the Saudi matches can be reserved through the WeBook app. Further information, including T.V. broadcast details, will be released at a later date.