Messi mania: Columbus expects record crowd in move to Cleveland - ESPN

Lionel Messi has played in his share of unique environments as one of the top soccer players in the world.

He adds another on Saturday when the Argentine superstar visits the Dawg Pound.

Instead of Cleveland Browns fans barking at opponents from the bleachers in the East end zone, Columbus Crew supporters will take over the space on Saturday when Columbus hosts Inter Miami.

The Crew has had the option of holding a match in Cleveland since the Haslam Sports Group took over the franchise in 2019. The Haslams also own the Browns.

«This is a unique moment in time with Messi where we can fill the building and ensure that the first experience that Northeast Ohio has with the Columbus Crew is in a packed house,» said Josh Glessing, the Haslam Sports Group's chief of strategy development who is also the Crew's president of business operations.

It will be the 11th match in MLS that Messi has played in an NFL stadium since he arrived in Miami in 2023 after captaining Argentina to the 2022 World Cup title. It is the second time that a club has moved it to a larger facility. The previous matches — nine regular season and one playoff — averaged 61,507 fans.

Last year, Sporting Kansas City drew 72,610 when they played Inter Miami at Arrowhead Stadium instead of their home field, which has a capacity of 18,467.

Atlanta United, Charlotte FC, the Chicago Fire and New England Revolution play in NFL facilities. Last Sunday's scoreless draw at Chicago's Soldier Field had a crowd of 62,358, a single-game record for the Fire.

The Crew expect to set a single-game record, surpassing the 31,550 it drew for a 1996 match at Ohio Stadium against the New York-New Jersey MetroStars.

«For Inter Miami to travel around Major League Soccer and for us to