The recent friendly match between Vissel Kobe and Inter Miami has been a hot topic among sports fans, as is any match involving the great Lionel Messi. Football on TV is big business, but as it turns out, also rather complicated.
On Sunday, during the broadcast of another Inter Miami friendly, this time against Hong Kong, certain remarks led to confusion among MLS Season Pass viewers. As a result, Apple decided to pull the friendly match between Inter Miami and Vissel Kobe from MLS Season Pass.
This decision came as a blow for fans who were looking forward to Wednesday’s contest – marking the end of the Florida club’s trip to Asia. The trip itself has been fraught with issues and controversy, with this latest development adding fuel to the fire.
Major League Soccer provided clarification as to why it would not be broadcasting this much-anticipated friendly between Inter Miami and J-League champions Vissel Kobe. According to them, in Japan, promoters failed to meet the technical requirements necessary for distributing a world feed.
Major League Soccer said:
“As with all international matches in Inter Miami CF’s pre-season tour, production of the host feed of the match is the responsibility of the promoter. Unfortunately, for the Vissel Kobe match, the local promoters are unable to provide a world feed for distribution in the timeframe required to meet our technical needs, which directly impacts our ability to produce coverage for MLS Season Pass or the MLS website.”
Despite these setbacks, there are still plans to broadcast future matches involving Inter Miami on MLS Season Pass. For instance, their game against Newell’s Old Boys at DRV PNK Stadium remains scheduled for broadcast.
Initial rumours suggested that following Messi’s absence in Hong Kong, Inter Miami had cancelled their entire Asia tour. This speculation drew parallels with Al-Nassr backing out of a China tour due to an injury sustained by Cristiano Ronaldo.
IMAGO/BEAUTIFUL SPORTS/Carabelli / Avalon
However, these rumours have been put to rest as it was confirmed that Inter Miami are currently in Japan and Messi himself addressed his status regarding upcoming games during a media interaction held Tuesday morning in Japan.
Inter Miami star, Lionel Messi, said:
“The truth is that I feel very good compared to a few days ago, if I’m honest, I still don’t know if I will be able to or not. But I feel much better, and I really want to be able to do it.”
Kyodo/Newscom / Newscom / Avalon
Messi admitted that playing multiple games amidst extensive travelling is challenging. However, he remains optimistic about participating in Wednesday’s contest.
While the absence of the Vissel Kobe vs Inter Miami match from MLS Season Pass caused disappointment among fans, it’s important to remember that this decision was taken due to technical issues rather than any deliberate action. Fans can look forward to future matches involving Inter Miami on MLS Season Pass and continue supporting their favourite team.
