1 DC Fan vs. 26,678 Inter Miami Fans in a 4-0 Loss at Nu Stadium

Inter Miami 4-0 DC United, October 10, 2026

As a lifelong D.C. United and Barça supporter, I was super excited to watch Messi and Suárez play my local team in Miami, Florida. I had always imagined Messi playing D.C. United when I was a kid, and now I could finally see my soccer idol in the flesh from the stands and it was definitely an amazing experience. Unsurprisingly, I was completely surrounded by Inter Miami fans (I was the only one in D.C. gear as far as the eye could see).

Any Black and Red supporter could tell you this was going to be a tough match to get a result. DC has been inconsistent all season long and was coming up against a motivated Miami team that hadn’t won in five games and was hungry for a win. DC also hadn’t picked up a win against Inter Miami since 2021.

Being there in person, the atmosphere from the opening whistle was electric. "La Familia," Inter Miami’s supporter group, sang a variety of Argentine national team inspired songs, and the stadium continuously serenaded Messi with cheers and chants during warmups and whenever he appeared on the jumbotron.

From the first moment of the match, it was clear that this game was one big party for Messi and Inter Miami, and they saw DC as no real threat.

However, the game started surprisingly well for D.C. They immediately punished Miami for their complacency by breaking their lackluster defensive line and coming close to scoring in the 2nd minute. It offered me a brief moment of hope that perhaps D.C. could quiet the crowd, keep their heads, and actually compete in this fixture. Or even squeak a victory. Sadly, all hope was dashed on Inter’s first attack when an open Suárez scored with a fine finish in the 3rd minute.

Regardless, DC responded well once again, refusing to go down without a fight, though, as has been the case for most of this season, they lacked an end product. Baribo, Nonó, and Hopkins were the highlights for DC in the first half. But unfortunately from my point of view anyway, you could tell that at any moment Miami could turn it up and create a scoring opportunity.

While D.C. held their own in the first half, Suárez devastatingly scored his brace in the 39th minute following a great save by Sean Johnson on a Messi run.

While the momentum and stats were fairly even despite Miami leading 2-0 at halftime, the second half was an absolute dumpster fire. D.C. looked flat, with no motivation to keep fighting. Messi, after being somewhat quiet by his standards in the first half, immediately made it 3-0 in the 47th minute. Sean Johnson managed to claw a Suárez shot off the goal line in the 52nd minute to prevent it from becoming 4-0 early, but Messi hit the post in the 54th, and after a beautiful dummy from Suárez and a stunning dribble through two defenders by Messi, it was 4-0—and that was that.

The second-half performance from DC was honestly pathetic. It isn’t the heavy scoreline or Messi and Suárez dancing through the defense that bothers me most, but rather the lack of effort and focus. The number of times Suárez and company were left unmarked on free kicks, combined with the half-hearted press from the attack and midfield, got to the point where it felt downright unprofessional.

The numbers spell it out: over their last 10 games, D.C. United has only scored 9 goals while conceding 19. In any of the top 5 European leagues, that would be relegation form and a huge financial consequences from the owners, but for DC in the MLS, that is just another season where underperforming is the norm.

Still, hope is not entirely lost. They are only 6 points off the playoff line and have a game in hand. DC's next game is against the the New York Red Bulls on Wednesday, October 14 at home at 7:30 p.m. A derby win may be the restart that is needed to get into the playoff places at last.