After further review into the allegations that Lionel Messi gained unauthorized access to the officials’ locker room following the match between Inter Miami and LAFC on Saturday night at the LA Memorial Coliseum, Major League Soccer found that the player did not violate league policy.
The matter will subsequently not be taken up with the MLS Disciplinary Committee.
MLS was originally made aware of the incident after a video began circulating of the Inter Miami captain appearing to enter the referees’ premises momentarily, but the area Messi walked through was in fact not restricted by the league.
The door the player entered was not to the referees’ locker room.
Chris Rivett, Professional Referee Organization director of communications, also confirmed to ESPN that Messi did not enter the officials’ locker room.
“After speaking with match officials, we can confirm he did not enter the premises,” Rivett said.
– Messi struggles in MLS opener; will it impact his World Cup hopes?
– LAFC brush aside Inter Miami in MLS season opener at Coliseum
Inter Miami head coach Javier Mascherano confirmed he did not see Messi upset when asked if the player was bothered with the officiating throughout the match, which LAFC won 3-0.
“No, no, no I didn’t see anything. The truth is that the match finished and then I went into the locker room,” he said in the post-match press conference.
Inter Miami visits Orlando City next on March 1 at Inter&Co Stadium.
