Messi’s 100th Inter Miami goal lifts Herons past Cruz Azul for Campeones Cup.

Lionel Messi scored his 100th Inter Miami goal on Wednesday night, 16 September, heading in Luis Suárez’s cross in the 24th minute at Nu Stadium in Miami. Inter Miami beat Mexican side Cruz Azul 2–0 and won the 2026 Michelob ULTRA Campeones Cup, the annual match between the MLS Cup holders and Mexico’s Campeón de Campeones winners, Reuters, MLSSoccer.com, and Inter Miami CF reported.

Messi reached the mark in his 115th appearance across all competitions, those accounts said. The club frame called him the first Inter Miami player to reach 100 goals. MLS and ESPN noted the milestone bookended a century that began against the same Cruz Azul side: Messi’s first Inter Miami goal was a stoppage-time free kick in a 2–1 Leagues Cup win over Cruz Azul in July 2023.

Casemiro headed Messi’s corner from the left in the 81st minute for the second goal. Inter Miami CF said it was Casemiro’s fourth goal since his summer arrival; MLS framed the finish as sealing the silverware after Cruz Azul’s best equalizing chance — Gabriel Fernández’s header off the post and a rebound blocked by Casemiro — had failed. Goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair made six saves, including an early denial of José Paradela in the sixth minute and a stoppage-time free-kick save that preserved the clean sheet, the club recap said.

New head coach Cristian “Kily” González won a trophy in his first match in charge after taking over from interim coach Guillermo Hoyos earlier in the week, ESPN and the club reported. Reuters quoted González: “Leo told me he’d make me a champion, so he kept his word.” Those are published quotes on the Reuters story, not desk color.

Inter Miami CF listed Dayne St. Clair in goal; Facundo Mura, Maximiliano Falcón, Casemiro, and Fricio Caicedo in the back line; Rodrigo De Paul, Yannick Bright, and Matías Galarza in midfield; Messi, Suárez, and Germán Berterame up top. The club noted Galarza’s first start since signing. Club goal tallies for Messi’s century: 11 in 2023, 23 in 2024, 43 in 2025, and 23 so far in 2026. MLS said the win leveled the all-time Campeones Cup series between MLS and Liga MX at four wins apiece and named Messi Campeones Cup Superior Player of the Match. ESPN said Casemiro’s four goals since arrival have all been headers, including finishes against CF Montréal, Atlanta United, and Chicago before a scoreless outing against Nashville.

Named actors and checkable sequence locked to the wires: Messi’s header from Suárez’s right-flank cross at 24'; Messi’s corner and Casemiro’s header at 81'; St. Clair’s six saves; González’s debut win. MLS said Messi rose over Willer Ditta for the opener and was later ruled narrowly offside on a second-half counter with Suárez. Club possession and shot lines put Cruz Azul at 52% possession and 18 shots to Miami’s 7, with Miami’s six saves and Cruz Azul’s zero on that club card. Match officials on the ESPN game page listed referee Keylor Herrera Villalobos.

The desk records soft splits without choosing. Inter Miami CF styled the night as a “fifth title in club history”; MLS framed four consecutive seasons of silverware in the Messi era (Leagues Cup 2023, Supporters’ Shield 2024, MLS Cup 2025, Campeones Cup 2026) without restating a career club total. Reuters said Messi has helped Miami win four trophies. The lead omits any club-title count; the trophy name, score, and Messi’s 100th hold. Venue is styled Nu Stadium across Reuters, MLS, and the club. An ESPN story by Lizzy Becherano timed Messi’s 100th to 114 games; Reuters, MLS, and Inter Miami CF hold 115 appearances — the locked body uses 115.

What comes next is checkable: Inter Miami hosts San Diego FC on Sunday, 20 September, at 7 p.m. ET at Nu Stadium on the MLS and club “next up” lines; Cruz Azul vs CF Monterrey on Saturday, 19 September, on the MLS card; published Eastern Conference standings with Miami second behind Nashville SC on the ESPN frame.

Floor: Messi 100th IM goal (header 24’ from Suárez) in 115 apps; Casemiro 81’ header from Messi corner; Inter Miami 2–0 Cruz Azul; Michelob ULTRA Campeones Cup; St. Clair 6 saves; Kily González first match, wins trophy; Nu Stadium Wed 16 Sep.