MIAMI (WSVN) – Officials with Inter Miami CF gave a tour of the Miami stadium under construction.
Construction crews gave 7News a preview of Miami Freedom Park as they say the park is already over 70% completed.
“You look around at all the cranes, it was Herculean. So, again, ambition is the best layman’s term,” said Graham Oxley, Vice President of Miami Freedom Park.
The stadium, which some call the house that team co-owner David Beckman built, will become the team’s permanent home when it opens in 2026.
Located just east of Miami International Airport, the state-of-the-art facility will seat 25,000 fans and has a canopy to keep fans dry if it rains during a game.
Crews say the canopy is operated by a one-of-a-kind cable system, a first for any stadium in Major League Soccer.
“It’s, I joke, it’s kind of my Messi. We, on the stadium side, went out for the most ambitious canopy there is, and we delivered,” said Oxley. Our canopy moves quite a bit, so there’s an equilibrium and a balance where our inner ring and outer ring get to a point where they are each pulling on each other.”
Officials say Miami Freedom Park is set to be ready on April 4, 2026, for Inter Miami’s season opener against Austin FC.
“Everything you see is a global team across three or four different continents that worked over 20 months to put this all together,” said Oxley.
Last month, Messi was on site at the Freedom Park to sign his three-year contract extension.
On Sunday, Inter Miami plays at F.C. Cincinnati in the East semi-finals. If Messi and his teammates advance and then win the East finals, there’s a possibility that Inter Miami could host the MLS Championship Game.
If that happens, it would be their last game at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale on Dec. 6.
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