Lizzy BecheranoMay 14, 2026, 08:00 AM ET

Ahead of a rare game between Inter Miami and the Seattle Sounders last year, Sounders midfielder Obed Vargas was excited because he knew it meant a chance to meet his idols: Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets.

But he wasn't just going to meet the former Barcelona stars -- Vargas had to try to beat them and the rest of Miami because the 2025 Leagues Cup was on the line for the victor. Quickly, he found himself receiving the wrath of the stars he idolized as a kid when, during his brilliant performance, he was confronted by several players in pink.

"It was never my intention to provoke them or make them angry," Vargas told ESPN. "But obviously, given how things unfolded and how I played, perhaps they did get provoked. But for me, the goal was for the team to win -- [Messi, Busquets, Suarez and Alba] taught me that."

Since Messi joined MLS in 2023 and other big names soon followed, many longtime MLS players have found themselves in a strange position: going from admiring their soccer heroes from a distance to pestering them on the pitch.

Vargas, born in Anchorage, Alaska, grew up trying to emulate Busquets' style of play as a defensive midfielder. As Vargas' style of play became more attack-oriented, he looked to Messi and Suárez for inspiration. Despite years of being a fan, Vargas understood that when the game kicked off, his heroes would just be opponents like any other.

After the Sounders took the lead en route to an eventual win, tensions grew, and the cameras focused on an interaction between Vargas and Messi. In a confusing moment without context for spectators, the two looked to be arguing before Vargas put his arm around Messi and laughed.

"I think if it had been someone else, maybe I would have gotten hooked [on the confrontation], but because it's Messi, I laughed because the truth is what was going through my head is: 'You are Messi, you are the best of all time in the world, you're getting frustrated by me?'" Vargas told ESPN. "... It made me laugh, honestly. And I tried not to get hooked, but for me it was never a moment where I was going to fight with him.

"My reaction was always, 'Why did you get hooked on me? Why me? You can do whatever you want on the field. I'm nobody compared to you.' So, that's why I laughed, and maybe he saw it in a different way. Maybe he thought I was making fun of him for laughing, but that wasn't the case. The truth is, it was a moment where I didn't know how to respond. For me, it was a very special moment, but I knew I had to do my job and play well."

Inter Miami CF vs. Seattle Sounders FC - Game Highlights

Vargas joined Atlético Madrid earlier this year, but got his start with the Tacoma Defiance, a Sounders reserve team, before joining the Sounders in 2021 and he won two trophies in five seasons.

Like Vargas, Sounders teammate Pedro de la Vega looked up to his opponents. Born in Olavarría, Argentina, De La Vega credits Messi for the joy he has brought to his home country. He admitted before the Leagues Cup final: "My family, my friends and those closest to me are really happy [that I will face Messi in the final]. Obviously me too, but I am trying to stay calm and focus on the game to do the best and do our job."

Although the Seattle Sounders forward did not score a goal in the final, he was active in attack, which led to another heated exchange on the field. He admitted he felt some additional pressure when provoking players he labeled as "idols."

"For me, [Messi and Rodrigo De Paul] are the greatest, simply the greatest we have, the world champions, they are my idols and well, these are just things that happen in a match," De La Vega said. "I tried to focus on the game and not let that get to me too much because obviously, facing those players as an Argentinian brings extra pressure, which is normal, but I tried to stay focused on the match and do what I had to do."

When then-Monterrey forward Brandon Vázquez faced Inter Miami in the 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup quarterfinals, he was also determined to do his job despite being a fan that watched Messi, Suárez, Busquets and Alba when they were at Barcelona together.

"Before the game, it was kind of like, 'Oh crap, I'm actually going to be playing these guys.'" said Vázquez, who now plays for Austin FC. "There were these moments on the field that when I would see Messi on the ball or Messi playing a through ball to Suárez, I was like, 'Holy s---, I am playing against these guys.' It was almost like an out-of-body experience. Like I grew up playing with these guys on [the video game] FIFA, you know, I grew up watching these guys celebrating their goals and all of sudden I'm like watching Suárez going [one-on-one] versus my keeper, and I'm 30 yards away."

Vázquez went on to score in the second leg of the series, helping Monterrey to win 5-2 on aggregate and eliminate Miami from the continental competition. Frustrations in the second game of the series led to yellow cards for both sides and an eventual red to Alba.

MLS players getting chippy with the likes of Messi tends to be less noticed than the reverse. Instead, players have faced criticism for pandering to Messi and Suárez on the field, often being called out for requesting jerseys or even the occasional photo after suffering a defeat to Inter. When the Herons eliminated FC Cincinnati 4-0 in last season's Eastern Conference semifinals, FCC defender Teenage Hadebe eagerly swapped jerseys with Messi despite forming part of the backline that allowed four goals against. (He later gave the jersey away.)

In 2024, New York City FC player Maxi Morález even revealed he prepared a week in advance for how he would ask Messi for his jersey before the match against Inter Miami, calling Messi's shirt the most prized possession. Although NYCFC tied the game 1-1 with a last-minute goal, Morález had already spoken to Messi and arranged the jersey exchange well before the final whistle.

The following year, however, Morález and Messi got into a heated exchange during the MLS Eastern Conference semifinal, prompting fans to try to read Messi's lips and come up with some colorful speculation about what was said.

For the players who beat Miami and felt the heat from their idols, these matches aren't just fond memories, but growth opportunities. When asked by ESPN if their games against the Herons taught them anything in particular, both Vargas and Vázquez gave similar answers: how to be a competitor.

"What I'll take away from what happened is that they care and want to win," Vargas said. "Obviously, anyone can act like that, but for me, the way they competed, that they cared, and that they were really focused on that game. It tells me and shows me that they've won so much and have come so far because of the way they compete, the mentality they have to win.

"And that's incredible to me because winning a League Cup, or losing, or winning an MLS Cup doesn't do anything for their careers. It doesn't really add much to their careers, in my opinion, because they have won everything, but it means a lot to them, and so for me, it's a lesson that if I want to go far, I can't settle for nothing. Everything I play, you have to want to win, and that's what I took away from it afterward. But for me, it does mean a lot."

Source: https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/48458193/for-mls-players-meeting-messi-one-thing-facing-wrath-field-another