Doug McIntyre
Soccer journalist
Lionel Messi and Inter Miami are out of the Concacaf 2025 champions.
The White-Hot Vancouver WhiteCaps scored two goals in the second half to cancel the 1-0 advantage of the Heron in Wednesday’s semifinal match in southern Florida, giving the Canadian club a 3-1 victory and a surprising 5-1 victory in the aggregate in the two-games series of two games that began north of the border last week.
Jordi Alba reduced Miami’s aggregate defeat before one when he opened the scoring in the ninth minute. It seemed that the hosts could level a son later, but Vancouver managed to enter the locker room in the half -long break before Inter could add another goal.
But a couple of WhiteCaps goals shortly after the intermediate, the first of the United States national team striker Brian White, the second two minutes after midfielder Ecuadore Pedro Vite, extended the general advantage of visitors to three goals. Sebastian Berhalter added another before he ended up aggravating Miami’s misery.
This was a totally deserved victory of the leaders of the MLS, both on Wednesday and in the two games. Vancouver will now face the winner of the second semifinal between Mexican sides Cruz Azul and Los Tigres. That game will be played on Thursday (10 PM ET, FS2). The regional final is scheduled for June 1.
This is how Wednesday’s contest shook.
Game game
Miami opened the scoring with a goal made in Barcelona. Former Blaugrana Trio Alba, Messi and Luis Suarez conspired to create the possibility that Alba ended with a powerful shot that made his way through the goalkeeper of Vancouver Yohei Takaoka:
Crucial moment
White’s goal in the 51st minute was the effective decisive factor. Crucially, visitors cool a potentially attacked goal, which means that Miami had to score three goals to win directly.
As this cold reality began to dawn to the stunned players of Las Heron, Vite put the result without a doubt.
Key statistics
The Whitecaps became the fourth MLS club to reach the regional final in the last four years, matching the representation of the first/Canadians in the previous two decades.
What’s still for Inter Miami?
It is the MLS Cup or the bust for the men of Javier Mascherano. The Heron entered 2025 with the strength of the best regular season of the MLS in the history of the MLS, but hesitated in the playoffs and in the champions Cup.
These competitions were the clear priority for Miami during the winter, when Mascherano replaced his Argentine partner Tara Martino as coach. Then, the setback of Wednesday and the shameful fashion in which representatives occurred a significant blow for the most amazing club in the now 30 MLS franchises.
With that coveted Concacaf crown now outside the table, the “Core Four” of Alba, Messi, Suárez and Sergio Busquets will pay all their attention to rising the most important trophy in the December national game.
Inter Miami returns to the MLS action on Saturday when the rival of the Eastern Conference, New York Red Bulls, visit Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale.
What follows for whitecaps?
Cinderella’s career continues to Vancouver, which has been a revelation this season under the first year chief Jesper Sørensen. They will wait a day to see who they will face in the final, then they will resume the league game on Saturday at the house of Real Salt Lake.
Doug McIntyre is Fox Sports football reporter who has covered USA National teams for men and women in the world cups of FIFA on five continents. Follow it @Bydougmcintyre.
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