Even before his team faced Lionel Messi in the League Cup, FC Dallas owner Dan Hunt had nothing but praise for MLS’s greatest ever transfer.
In a matter of games, Messi has been transforming Inter Miami’s fortunes — and that continued on Sunday night when the 36-year-old inspired Miami to a remarkable victory in Texas that takes them to the quarterfinals.
In an interview with Bloomberg before the game, Hunt compared Messi – considered by many to be the greatest soccer player of all time – to the most likely candidate for the post of greatest to ever touch a basketball court.
Hunt said he couldn’t miss this match for the world because, for him, seeing “La Pulga” on the pitch: “It’s like watching Michael Jordan”. He added: “You’re seeing one of the two greatest players of all time in that experience. So, yes, this is a big moment for FC Dallas.”
Hunt is qualified to make that comparison, as his family was one of the founding investors in the team that Jordan is made history with – and is arguably the greatest player for: the Chicago Bulls.
Dan and his brothers Clark, Sharron and Lamar Hunt Jr. are also co-owners of the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs, as well as FC Dallas. They all descend from Lamar Hunt Sr., one of the most influential sports executives in US history. He founded the American Football League, which would eventually merge with the NFL.
Lamar Sr. was also one of the founding investors in Major League Soccer after spending years advocating for the growth of the sport in the US. The US Open Cup was renamed in his honor, adopting his name for both the competition and the trophy itself.
