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- New Inter Miami stadium name, including stand named for Messi
- Where the new Inter Miami stadium is located
- When the new Inter Miami stadium will open
- Size, capacity, and features of the new Inter Miami stadium
- How much the new Inter Miami stadium cost
Lionel Messi has already become the face of Inter Miami, and now he's set to become the face of the club's new stadium.
He also could become the lasting inspiration for its name.
Set to open soon, Inter Miami will finally be able to play within the city of Miami itself, ending David Beckham's saga-like search that has lasted more than a decade.
Previously, the club played its games at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, which is nearly an hour’s drive north of the Miami city limits. They capped off their time at the venue triumphantly, winning their first-ever MLS Cup title to conclude the 2025 campaign.
The Sporting News brings you all the details on Inter Miami's new home, which is currently under construction but scheduled to open its doors to the public in the near future.
MORE: All about Lionel Messi's new contract extension with Inter Miami
Inter Miami new stadium name
Until recently, with the stadium still under construction, the venue was simply called "Miami Freedom Park."
However, on March 3, 2026, Inter Miami announced that a naming rights deal had been secured with Brazilian financial technology company NuBank, with the stadium to be known as Nu Stadium. Terms of the agreement were not revealed other than to state it was a "multiyear deal."
On Nov. 7, a report from Argentine publication Doble Amarilla claimed that the stadium is set to be named after the club's biggest star, Lionel Andres Messi. While that did not entirely come to pass, the team did name a portion of its east stand "Leo Messi Stand" in honor of their most decorated superstar. The named section encompasses sections 117-121 in the lower bowl, and 217-223 in the upper bowl.
MORE: A look at the 2025 MLS playoff bracket and how Inter Miami are performing
Inter Miami new stadium location
The new Inter Miami stadium is located in the Grapeland Heights neighborhood of Miami, directly next to Miami International Airport.
The official address for the venue is 1802 Northwest 37th Avenue. It sits about an hour’s drive south of Inter Miami’s current home, Chase Stadium.
The stadium was built on the site of the old Melreese Country Club, a city-owned golf course that was closed and demolished to make way for the new venue.
When will the new Inter Miami stadium open? Date of first match
While the official word through the 2025 league season was that Inter Miami would move into the new Freedom Park stadium in time for the start of the 2026 MLS season, that has not quite come into fruition.
Technically, the stadium is currently on track to be ready for the team's first home match, but Major League Soccer has afforded the Herons a bit more time to get everything sorted for opening day.
Inter Miami will play their first five matches of the MLS season on the road, before finally making their home debut on April 4, 2026 against Austin FC.
With construction on the venue not yet completed as the opening date arrived, the match could feature a limited capacity after the club was unable to secure a Temporary Certificate of Occupancy, which is a temporary permit issued by city authorities before the final inspection is completed. Instead, they have only secured a "limited event permit with restrictions and additional precautions" according to Andy Slater of Fox Sports. It's unclear what the terms of this permit are, and if it will restrict capacity of the venue on the day.
With Nu Stadium set to open, it means that Inter Miami have vacated their current home Chase Stadium, which was itself constructed with the understanding that it would be a temporary venue. The last match at their old venue was initially believed to be the 2025 MLS Cup final, which saw the Herons triumph over Vancouver Whitecaps by a 3-1 score.
However, they used the venue for their lone 2026 CONCACAF Champions League home game, drawing with Nashville SC 1-1 in the actual final match at Chase Stadium, suffering elimination on the away goals tiebreaker.
Inter Miami new stadium capacity, size, features
According to the club's release regarding the new stadium, the capacity of the new Miami Freedom Park stadium will be 25,000.
The stadium is expected to boast an elevated main concourse, two-tiered seating, and a tensile cable roof featuring the largest overhead canopy in Major League Soccer. Inter Miami owner Jorge Mas called it "a challenging engineering feat" citing the "hurricane codes" necessary to build such a venue in south Florida.
Situated in Miami, a global hub for wealth and celebrities, premium seating is a main feature of the arena. Five-year premium Loge packages can cost upwards of $60,000.
Inter Miami new stadium cost
Inter Miami's new stadium is estimated to cost $350 million. It was designed in tandem by Miami architectural firm Arquitectonica and Kansas City-based firm Manica.
However, the construction project includes much more than just the stadium itself. The entire Miami Freedom Park campus will feature the stadium, a 5,000-space parking lot, a 750-room hotel, an office park, a retail village, 58 acres of public parks, community soccer fields, and a tech hub, totaling approximately $1 billion to construct.
According to the club, the new stadium has been entirely privately funded and required no city money to complete construction. However, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis did allocate $8 million in public funding to complete a road around the stadium.

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