Lionel Messi’s Impact in US Compared to Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa-Led ‘Resurgence’ of Baseball as America Gears For Soccer Revolution

Lionel Messi sent shockwaves across the soccerverse when Inter Miami announced his arrival to the MLS. Fresh off from winning the World Cup and Ligue 1, La Pulga had plenty left in the tank and could have continued his journey in Europe. To many, however, his decision to move to the USA meant only one thing – MLS is going to change forever. In simple words, soccer fever is about to run wild among the American fan base.

From the unveiling ceremony to the training sessions, Lionel Messi has injected new life into American soccer culture

If anyone needed a preview of what Lionel Messi’s impact on American soccer will look like, his unveiling ceremony is an appropriate example. On a rainy night, Miami’s DRV PNK stadium was jam-packed with 20,000 spectators including everyone from soccer fans, to sporting celebrities to entrepreneurs. This is the kind of impact that lays the foundation for a robust sporting culture.

Every sport needs an icon with magical skills to add ‘cult’ to the culture. The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner’s arrival has evidently become a talking point. In a first for America’s soccer culture, fans even flock early to the stadium these days just to catch Messi in training. As writers at The Athletic noted, this is eerily reminiscent of what Baseball witnessed during the rise of Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa.

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“It felt a bit like scenes from a different sport, in a different era: when Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa led baseball resurgence with their home run race and their batting practice sessions became as much a part of the show as the games that they were bringing into everyday conversation,” said Paul Tenorio and Pablo Maurer.

Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa rekindled America’s love for baseball

The 1994-1995 was a dark period for the MLB. The season witnessed the longest mid-season work stoppage eventually leading to the cancellation of the postseason and the World Series. The stoppage caused by the salary cap issue made a huge dent in American baseball as it saw a huge drop in viewership over the next few seasons.

All this, however, changed in 1998 when Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa delivered record-breaking performances. The summer of ’98 saw both breaking Roger Maris’ 1961 record of 61 home runs in a single season with Sosa hitting 66 home runs and Mark McGwire hitting 70 home runs.

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Their record-breaking antics brought back some much-needed competitiveness and excitement to the league. Moreover, their extremely affable personality and bromance gave American baseball a new face and marked the beginning of a new era. An era of top-class performance meeting off-field entertainment.