<p>A sold-out crowd of around 20,000 waited through a delay caused by torrential rain and heavy lightning to officially welcome Lionel Messi to Inter Miami on Sunday.</p>.<p>The ceremony dubbed "La PresentaSIon," at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., also marked Miami's official signing of former FC Barcelona midfielder Sergio Busquets. The 35-year-old Spaniard landed a deal that runs through the 2025 season.</p>.<p>Busquets and Messi were teammates with Barcelona for 15 seasons.</p>.<p>Upon being introduced, Messi briefly addressed the crowd before the team played a tribute video on the scoreboard screen. The likes of Tom Brady, Stephen Curry, DJ Khaled and Gloria and Emilio Estefan welcomed Messi to the United States.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/sports/football/messi-expects-great-things-at-inter-miami-after-glitzy-unveiling-1237710.html">Messi expects 'great things' at Inter Miami after glitzy unveiling</a></strong></p>.<p>"Thank you very much to all the people for supporting me and giving me this love," Messi said in Spanish. "I am very happy to be here in Miami.</p>.<p>"I really want to start training, to compete, I have the same desire that I always had to compete, to want to win, to help the club continue to grow.</p>.<p>"I am very happy to have chosen to come to play in this city with my family, to choose this project and I have no doubt that we are going to enjoy it a lot, we are going to have a good time and very good things are going to happen."</p>.<p>As for Busquets, he was a member of Spain's World Cup-winning squad in 2010 and earned 143 international caps. He retired from international play following the 2022 World Cup.</p>.<p>His contract with Barcelona was not renewed this season, which opened up an opportunity to join Messi with the Herons.</p>.<p>"I am excited to welcome Sergio Busquets to Inter Miami," managing owner Jorge Mas said in a news release. "Since day one we have set out to bring the world's best players. Sergio's repertoire speaks for itself."</p>.<p>Busquets said in a press release, "This is a special and exciting opportunity that I'm very excited to take. I'm looking forward to this next step in my career with Inter Miami.</p>.<p>"I was impressed by the club when I came with Barcelona last year and now I'm happy and ready to represent the club myself. I can't wait to help bring the success that this ambitious club strives for."</p>.<p>Busquets also has a solid relationship with recently hired Inter Miami coach Gerardo "Tata" Martino, the former head man at Barcelona (2013-14) who also had a solid bond with Messi.</p>.<p>"We're very happy to bring somebody of Sergio's pedigree to Inter Miami," sporting director Chris Henderson said in a news release. "He is one of the smartest players to ever play the sport; he reads the game at an unprecedented level and impacts every facet of play.</p>.<p>"Sergio is a winner, a leader and a world-class talent, and we're excited to see him represent our franchise."</p>.<p>Inter Miami is experiencing a tough MLS campaign and has the worst record (5-14-3, 18 points) in the 29-team league. The Herons are winless in their past 11 MLS matches (0-8-3), with their last victory a 2-1 home decision over the New England Revolution on May 13.</p>.<p><em>Field Level Media via Reuters</em></p>
<p>A sold-out crowd of around 20,000 waited through a delay caused by torrential rain and heavy lightning to officially welcome Lionel Messi to Inter Miami on Sunday.</p>.<p>The ceremony dubbed "La PresentaSIon," at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., also marked Miami's official signing of former FC Barcelona midfielder Sergio Busquets. The 35-year-old Spaniard landed a deal that runs through the 2025 season.</p>.<p>Busquets and Messi were teammates with Barcelona for 15 seasons.</p>.<p>Upon being introduced, Messi briefly addressed the crowd before the team played a tribute video on the scoreboard screen. The likes of Tom Brady, Stephen Curry, DJ Khaled and Gloria and Emilio Estefan welcomed Messi to the United States.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/sports/football/messi-expects-great-things-at-inter-miami-after-glitzy-unveiling-1237710.html">Messi expects 'great things' at Inter Miami after glitzy unveiling</a></strong></p>.<p>"Thank you very much to all the people for supporting me and giving me this love," Messi said in Spanish. "I am very happy to be here in Miami.</p>.<p>"I really want to start training, to compete, I have the same desire that I always had to compete, to want to win, to help the club continue to grow.</p>.<p>"I am very happy to have chosen to come to play in this city with my family, to choose this project and I have no doubt that we are going to enjoy it a lot, we are going to have a good time and very good things are going to happen."</p>.<p>As for Busquets, he was a member of Spain's World Cup-winning squad in 2010 and earned 143 international caps. He retired from international play following the 2022 World Cup.</p>.<p>His contract with Barcelona was not renewed this season, which opened up an opportunity to join Messi with the Herons.</p>.<p>"I am excited to welcome Sergio Busquets to Inter Miami," managing owner Jorge Mas said in a news release. "Since day one we have set out to bring the world's best players. Sergio's repertoire speaks for itself."</p>.<p>Busquets said in a press release, "This is a special and exciting opportunity that I'm very excited to take. I'm looking forward to this next step in my career with Inter Miami.</p>.<p>"I was impressed by the club when I came with Barcelona last year and now I'm happy and ready to represent the club myself. I can't wait to help bring the success that this ambitious club strives for."</p>.<p>Busquets also has a solid relationship with recently hired Inter Miami coach Gerardo "Tata" Martino, the former head man at Barcelona (2013-14) who also had a solid bond with Messi.</p>.<p>"We're very happy to bring somebody of Sergio's pedigree to Inter Miami," sporting director Chris Henderson said in a news release. "He is one of the smartest players to ever play the sport; he reads the game at an unprecedented level and impacts every facet of play.</p>.<p>"Sergio is a winner, a leader and a world-class talent, and we're excited to see him represent our franchise."</p>.<p>Inter Miami is experiencing a tough MLS campaign and has the worst record (5-14-3, 18 points) in the 29-team league. The Herons are winless in their past 11 MLS matches (0-8-3), with their last victory a 2-1 home decision over the New England Revolution on May 13.</p>.<p><em>Field Level Media via Reuters</em></p>