Why is Lionel Messi not suspended for MLS clash despite picking up 5th yellow card for Inter Miami?

Lionel Messi will be available for Inter Miami’s trip to face New England Revolution on Sunday despite picking up his fifth yellow card of the MLS regular season in midweek. ESPN reported that the booking does not trigger a one-match suspension.

The Argentine was booked in the 44th minute of Inter Miami’s 2-2 draw with FC Cincinnati on Wednesday, a game the Herons salvaged through Riquelme Fillipi’s 90th-minute equalizer.

The card was his fifth of the campaign, after bookings against the Colorado Rapids, Orlando City, Nashville SC and Atlanta United.

Five yellows usually means a ban. MLS, however, runs a disciplinary incentive that can wipe bookings off a player’s total, and it states:

“A player will automatically reduce his yellow card accumulation total by one yellow card each time he appears in five consecutive matches without receiving a yellow card, red card or supplemental discipline in such matches.”

The 'good behavior incentive' can be applied a maximum of three times in a regular season, and it only trims the accumulation count, and the card itself stays on the player’s disciplinary record.

Lionel Messi has cleared the five-match threshold this season. Olé reported that two of his earlier bookings had already been removed from the count, so the Cincinnati card did not take him to the five that would force a ban.

Notably, the provision is not a Lionel Messi clause and has applied to every player since 2017.

What next for Inter Miami, and how has Lionel Messi performed this season?

Inter Miami sit third in the Eastern Conference table on 56 points from 32 games, two behind New England’s 58 with two more rounds to play. Sunday’s meeting at Gillette Stadium is effectively a decider for the number two spot and home-field advantage in the playoffs.

Lionel Messi has 25 goals and 15 assists in 28 league appearances and tops the Golden Boot race, though he drew a blank against Cincinnati. The Argentine has failed to score in each of his last two appearances for Inter Miami. He will be looking to be back among the goals in this crucial game against New England Revolution.

The eight-time Ballon d'Or winner has become the first player in MLS history to register 15 assists in three consecutive seasons. As things stand, Lionel Messi is the favorite to win the MLS MVP award for the third time in a row. The 39-year-old has a contract with Inter Miami that runs until 2028.