Despite Noah Allen completed his move to Chicago Fire, Lionel Messi won't be able to surpass him as the player with the most games at Inter Miami in the 2026 season. Lionel Messi has seen a clear path emerge to become the all-time appearance leader in Inter Miami history following Noah Allen‘s departure to the Chicago Fire. However, the Argentine legend will be unable to claim the record during the 2026 campaign, leaving him waiting until at least next season to take top spot. On Thursday, September 3, Inter Miami announced that defender Noah Allen completed a transfer to the Chicago Fire. The transaction was structured as a loan deal through the remainder of 2026, featuring a mandatory purchase option that will automatically trigger at the conclusion of the season to make the transfer permanent. As reported by Michelle Kaufman of the Miami Herald, the mandatory buy clause is set at approximately $3 million, meaning that entire sum will be reimbursed as allowable General Allocation Money (GAM) for Inter Miami‘s roster construction starting in the 2027 season. Speaking to Inter Miami’s official media channels, the homegrown defender reflected on his tenure with the club and his experience sharing the pitch with Messi. “I’m thankful to have been a part of Inter Miami and its history, and to have seen the Club grow into what it is today. I’m certainly grateful to play with the best player in the world, and players alongside him with a great history,” he stated. 🎙️ Noah Allen: “I’m thankful to have been a part of Inter Miami and its history" 🩷 pic.twitter.com/y0vLkfF0Ox— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) September 3, 2026 After making his first-team debut in 2022, Allen featured prominently across the rosters that captured all of Inter Miami’s major hardware, including the 2023 Leagues Cup, the 2024 Supporters’ Shield, and the 2025 MLS Cup. Over his time in South Florida, Allen tallied three goals and seven assists across 133 appearances in all competitions, establishing the franchise record for most games played in an Inter Miami shirt. Messi won’t catch up to Allen until 2027 Lionel Messi has firmly established himself as the most influential figure in Inter Miami history, holding the club’s all-time records for both goals (98) and assists (54). However, the forward has yet to break into the top three on the club’s all-time appearances leaderboard. Currently, Messi sits in fifth place with 111 appearances for the Herons, trailing Robert Taylor and Sergio Busquets (116 matches each), Drake Callender (118 matches), and Allen, who broke the all-time record back in April with 133 appearances. Even with none of those top four players remaining active on Inter Miami’s roster, the Argentine icon cannot reach the summit in 2026. Including the upcoming Campeones Cup clash against Cruz Azul and the remaining slate of the 2026 MLS regular season, Inter Miami have 13 matches scheduled. Should the Herons advance all the way to the MLS Cup Final (including a three-game round in the first round of the playoffs) they would add a maximum of six additional fixtures. Even if Messi features in every single minute of all 19 potential remaining matches, he would reach 130 appearances, leaving him three shy of Allen’s 133-match benchmark and pushing his record chase into the 2027 season.
With the chance of being face-to-face against Ryan Reynolds' Wrexham, Hugh Jackman revealed his interest in buying a stake in English side Norwich City. Hugh Jackman joins the growing lineup of Hollywood stars stepping into English soccer. With the prospect of squaring off against Deadpool co-star Ryan Reynolds and Wrexham in the EFL Championship, Jackman confirmed his active interest in acquiring a minority ownership stake in Norwich City. Jackman has been a boyhood supporter of Norwich City, rooted in his family connection with his mother originally hailing from the East Anglian city. Having attended matches at Carrow Road over the years, the actor revealed he was previously offered an investment opportunity in the club back in 2010, a proposal he turned down at the time and ultimately came to regret. Now, a fresh opportunity has emerged, and when asked in an interview with talkSPORT whether minority stakeholders offered him a chance to invest in Norwich City, Jackman was transparent about his intentions: “I’m very, very interested, and talking about it right now.“ He praised the transformative work accomplished by Reynolds and Rob McElhenney at Wrexham, while firmly reiterating his loyalty to the Norfolk side. “Good on Ryan, you do your thing, I’m all about the Canaries,” he added. 👀 "I am very, very interested!"💛💚 "I'm all about the canaries!"Hugh Jackman exclusively reveals to talkSPORT that he is "very interested" in buying a stake in Norwich City! pic.twitter.com/LUXzoguIjB— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) September 3, 2026 Jackman concluded with a bold double-promotion prediction, forecasting that both clubs will earn a place in the Premier League for the following season: “I went to Carrow Road a couple of times, and I love the Canaries, and this is the year we’re going to get promoted. My prediction is Norwich and Wrexham are getting promoted this year.“ Reynolds and Jackman face-to-face in the EFL Championship? Reynolds and McElhenney spearheaded the trend of A-list celebrity ownership in English football after acquiring Wrexham, engineering a fairy-tale rise from the fifth-tier National League in 2021 to the EFL Championship. Norwich City, by contrast, boast an extensive history in the Premier League, but with Jackman potentially coming aboard, the two Hollywood stars could face off as club directors this season. The initial fixture between Norwich City and Wrexham is scheduled for December 5 at Carrow Road, with the return leg set for March 16, 2027, at the Racecourse Ground. The two sides met last season, splitting the season series with each club claiming a road victory (2-1 for Norwich in North Wales and 3-2 for Wrexham in Norfolk). Norwich City’s ownership structure Delia Smith and Michael Wynn Jones previously served as the iconic public faces of Norwich City after taking majority control 29 years ago in November 1996. However, the club’s corporate hierarchy recently underwent a major restructuring, initiated when American billionaire Mark Attanasio began building his investment portfolio in the club in 2022. In early 2025, Norwich City issued a formal statement confirming that Norfolk Holdings had assumed 85 percent majority control of the club, with Attanasio leading the board of directors. Consequently, Smith and Wynn Jones retained a combined 10 percent equity stake, with remaining shares distributed among minority investors. Delia Smith and Michael Wynn-Jones celebrate winning Sky Bet Championship back in 2019. (Matthew Lewis/Getty Images) While Jackman revealed his intent to join Norwich City’s investment group, the exact size of his equity stake and degree of operational involvement remain unconfirmed. Although he acknowledged holding preliminary discussions with Smith, the former club chairman now controls only a 10 percent share, with details regarding any equity sale yet to be finalized.
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