EXCLUSIVE: 'While we thank Pele and Beckham, Messi is on another level!': CBS star Jenny Chiu on the impact of 'world's biggest superstar' coming to MLS
- Inter Miami is aiming for a July 21 debut for Argentine star Lionel Messi
- And his move to MLS is expected to send shockwaves through the USA
- DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news
Lionel Messi won't be the first global superstar to play in the USA - but he will be the biggest, according to CBS Sports' Jenny Chiu.
Messi is expected to join MLS' Inter Miami later this summer after leaving PSG and snubbing offers from Saudi Arabia and ex-club Barcelona.
And while he'll follow in the footsteps of Pele and David Beckham in playing Stateside, Chiu believes his impact will dwarf that of past blockbuster arrivals in America.
'When we talk about Messi, the age that we're in now, this digital landscape that we have - people that came to watch Pele had heard of the name but had never seen him,' Chiu said at DailyMail.com's Sports Road Show Tuesday in New York City.
'They didn't really know what they were gonna sign up for. Now we're in a place where every single person has watched Lionel Messi.'
![Jenny Chiu believes Lionel Messi will have an unprecedented impact on soccer in the USA](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/06/21/18/72383801-0-image-a-14_1687368649102.jpg)
Jenny Chiu believes Lionel Messi will have an unprecedented impact on soccer in the USA
![Messi will move to Inter Miami with lots left in the tank following his World Cup triumph](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/06/21/18/72380835-0-image-a-11_1687367029016.jpg)
Messi will move to Inter Miami with lots left in the tank following his World Cup triumph
![Messi (left) will follow in the footsteps of Inter Miami owner David Beckham (center)](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/06/21/18/71879767-0-Messi_left_will_now_join_the_MLS_side_that_is_owned_by_David_Bec-a-13_1687367633419.jpg)
Messi (left) will follow in the footsteps of Inter Miami owner David Beckham (center)
'That makes the impact so much bigger. Because the hunger for that is so much more. I've covered many important games in my life but I would pay insane amounts of money to watch Lionel Messi.'
'While we thank the people that have come before, and we thank Pele for being able to fill stadiums and David Beckham coming to the United States and MLS specifically... Lionel Messi is on another level. This is the world's biggest superstar.'
While Pele sold out stadiums with the New York Cosmos in 70's, the sport's popularity waned somewhat thereafter before building up again in the aughts.
Chiu thinks the league will be well-positioned to sustain its success after Messi's presumed two or three years in Miami are up.
'With Messi coming, others will start to wanna come,' the 'Morning Footy' host and reporter said the same week as Sergio Busquets was linked with a move to Miami as well. 'He wants his teammates, he wants his people to be next to him.'
Plus, she added, 'Miami is not a hard sell.'
While MLS viewership numbers are expected to be massive upon the Argentine star's arrival, eyes will also be on the USA women this summer as they attempt to win a third straight World Cup.
The Americans enter the tournament as one of the favorites but injuries to captain Becky Sauerbrunn and Catarina Macario have stripped the roster of significant players.
![DailyMail.com's Steven Fletcher is seen onstage with Chiu, Ray Katz and DailyMail.com's Kate McGreavy](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/06/21/18/72384043-12219971-image-a-24_1687369071143.jpg)
DailyMail.com's Steven Fletcher is seen onstage with Chiu, Ray Katz and DailyMail.com's Kate McGreavy
![Chiu is excited to see how the Women's World Cup unfolds as the USA looks for a three-peat](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/06/21/18/72384087-12219971-image-a-25_1687369269254.jpg)
Chiu is excited to see how the Women's World Cup unfolds as the USA looks for a three-peat
![Becky Sauerbrunn will miss the World Cup for the USWNT after picking up a foot injury in April](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/06/21/18/72233723-0-Becky_Sauerbrunn_will_miss_the_World_Cup_for_the_USWNT_after_pic-a-12_1687367078522.jpg)
Becky Sauerbrunn will miss the World Cup for the USWNT after picking up a foot injury in April
'It's gonna be difficult. England has really shown they're dominant as well,' Chiu said, while also naming France and Spain as contenders.
Chiu, a former youth player for the Mexican women's national team, doesn't know who will win in Australia and New Zealand.
But with ticket sales already exceeding one million - and NWSL attendance in the USA on the rise as well - she expects the tournament to be a hit.
'The viewership is there. You go to these games, all of these women's games... in LA [Angel City FC] they're selling out and they're not even winning. Gotham is selling out.
'It's record break, record break, record break in every single city and every single country and every single team on the women's side.'
![](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2017/08/02/636x90_facebook_ad_sport.png)
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