Messi's Inter Miami advances to MLS Cup final with 5-1 win over NYCFC in East final

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Lionel Messi will play for another trophy. Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets clearly aren't ready to begin their retirements, either.

Tadeo Allende scored three goals — Alba and Busquets, a pair of longtime Messi teammates who will retire when this season ends, had the assists on his first two — and Inter Miami topped New York City FC 5-1 on Saturday night for the Eastern Conference title and a berth in the MLS Cup final.

Mateo Silvetti scored in the 67th minute for Inter Miami, with Messi setting up that goal — the 405th assist of his career for club and country, which is generally believed to be the most in soccer history. Telasco Segovia scored off a heel pass from Alba in the 83rd minute to turn it into a runaway, and Allende finishing off the hat trick in the 89th minute was the final play.

“We have reached the final with a brotherhood of moving forward," Inter Miami coach Javier Mascherano said. “The power of one group can overcome many things.”

Tennis star Carlos Alcaraz brought the East trophy onto the field to present to Inter Miami's ownership, before it was handed to Messi. Fireworks, confetti and a ton of happy photos and hugs followed, but it was also clear this wasn't the trophy Inter Miami wants most.

“We have made a fantastic playoff run and are very deserving of reaching the final," Silvetti said in Spanish.

Inter Miami — the No. 3 seed in the East — will play host to Vancouver for the league title on Dec. 6 at 2:30 p.m. Eastern. Vancouver topped San Diego 3-1 later Saturday night for the Western Conference title.

It'll be the first MLS final appearance for Inter Miami, which had never made it past the opening postseason round in any of its first five seasons. Messi's club went 0-2 against Vancouver this season, losing both legs of a semifinal meeting in the CONCACAF Champions Cup by a 5-1 aggregate.

Justin Haak scored in the 37th minute for NYCFC, which went 0-2-1 against Inter Miami this season.

The win moves Inter Miami one step closer to another trophy, after winning the Leagues Cup in 2023 and the Supporters' Shield as MLS' top regular-season team last year. Messi, a World Cup champion for Argentina and now eight-time Ballon d’Or winner, joined the team midway through the 2023 season when it was at the bottom of the MLS standings and in an 11-match winless streak.

Now? The club's brand is global, Messi's No. 10 jersey in the club's pink kit is sold all over the world, a new stadium near Miami International Airport is on the way for next season, Messi is signed through 2028, he seems like a lock to win his second consecutive MLS MVP award and the team is on the brink of an MLS title.

Stars flock to see this team because of Messi; Alcaraz was there Saturday night, as were some members of the U.S. women's national team.

“Everyone in the world knows who Lionel Messi is. ... I think everyone thought he would come in here and do exactly what he's done,” said U.S. women's forward Lindsay Horan — whose Messi fandom goes back many years.

Messi got struck along the left side of his head in the ninth minute and was briefly shaken up, remaining down near the center circle for a few seconds before eventually getting to his feet. He got tripped with Inter Miami on the attack about two minutes later, then took a direct kick from about 30 yards out — playing it into the box, but Silvetti’s header was easily caught by NYCFC goalie Matt Freese.

Inter Miami's next chance came a minute later. This one was cashed in — a long pass from Busquets was controlled by Allende, who easily beat Freese from about 12 yards out for a 1-0 lead.

Allende struck again on a header off a long pass from Alba in the 23rd minute, making it 2-0. And after Messi set Silvetti up for the 3-1 lead, what essentially was a 25-minute or so countdown to a celebration was underway.

“This is a very satisfying result but the work continues," Allende said in Spanish. "There is still work to do but happy with what we have accomplished.”

AP MLS: https://apnews.com/hub/major-league-soccer

Inter Miami fans cheer at the start of an MLS Eastern Conference final soccer match against New York City FC, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Inter Miami forward Tadeo Allende, left, scores his side's first goal past New York City FC midfielder Justin Haak during the first half of an MLS Eastern Conference final soccer match, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi (10) lifts the trophy as Inter Miami players celebrate winning an MLS Eastern Conference final soccer match against New York City FC, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi (10) holds the trophy as Inter Miami players celebrate winning an MLS Eastern Conference final soccer match against New York City FC, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi, left, goes down in a clash with New York City FC midfielder Aiden O'Neill (21) during the first half of an MLS Eastern Conference final soccer match, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Inter Miami forwards Lionel Messi, left, and Luis Suarez arrive for an MLS Eastern Conference final soccer match against New York FC, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi, left,clashes with New York City FC midfielder Aiden O'Neill, right, during the first half of an MLS Eastern Conference final soccer match, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi (10) clashes with New York City FC midfielder Aiden O'Neill (21) during the first half of an MLS Eastern Conference final soccer match, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi (10) gets beat out for a header by New York City FC defender Raul Gustavo during the first half of an MLS Eastern Conference final soccer match, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

President Donald Trump and several top administration officials are joining with a cast of mostly conservative Christian clergy this Sunday on the National Mall in Washington for a prayer gathering billed as a "rededication of our country as One Nation Under God” upon America’s 250th birthday.

But some critics call the Rededicate 250 event an effort to “hijack” U.S. history with a false, Christian nationalist narrative — one they say fuses American and Christian identities and threatens a constitutional separation of church and state.

The daylong program is being organized by a nonprofit called Freedom 250. Its website describes it as a public-private partnership “leading the presidential programming for America's 250th anniversary,” which culminates with the anniversary of the Declaration of Independence on July 4.

Congressional Democrats have questioned the organization's structure and finances, which they see as a Trump-controlled end run around a separate commission charted by Congress a decade ago to prepare semiquincentennial events.

Organizers expect thousands of people to attend Rededicate 250, which will include worship music, prayers and speeches from Cabinet heads and other Republican officials, along with religious leaders and others. Trump and several other speakers are addressing the crowd by video, while others will speak in person. The scheduled participants include Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.

"Our founders knew two simple truths," Hegseth said in a promotional video for the event featuring a montage of Cabinet secretaries.

"Our rights don’t come from government, they come from God. And a nation is only as strong as its faith,” added Hegseth, whose use of Christian rhetoric to justify the U.S. and Israel's war against Iran and in other official settings has drawn scrutiny.

Another promotional video for Rededicate 250 blends various Christian and American imagery — scenes of a cross laid on an American flag, a robed choir, people raising their hands in worship — along with a brief scene of a man praying while wearing a Jewish skullcap. Voices of prominent preachers are heard, one proclaiming, “Faith in God is the value that most shaped America.”

Religious leaders on the Rededicate 250 program include several longtime Christian supporters of Trump, among them evangelist Franklin Graham and pastors Paula White-Cain, who heads the White House Faith Office; Robert Jeffress; and Samuel Rodriguez. Also scheduled are Catholic Cardinal Timothy Dolan and Bishop Robert Barron and Orthodox Jewish Rabbi Meir Soloveichik, the only faith leader on the program representing a non-Christian faith.

Musicians on the program include Grammy-winning contemporary Christian artist Chris Tomlin.

Some leading participants portray Rededicate 250 as a Christian gathering.

“I believe it’s a moment when the Body of Christ, the church, comes together and will boldly declare that America still needs God,” said Georgia pastor Jentezen Franklin in a social media video posted on X. “This is an opportunity for believers to stand together as one nation under God. ... I’m honored that they’ve asked me to speak and share the Gospel.”

Johnson noted that the event comes 250 years after Congress declared May 17, 1776, a “day of Humiliation, Fasting and Prayer” on behalf of the Revolutionary cause.

Critics say Rededicate 250 is shaping up to promote Christian nationalism — whose adherents typically believe that the United States was founded as and should be a Christian nation.

“What should be a broadly unifying celebration has been politically hijacked and wrapped up in this MAGA narrative that tries to rewrite our history and promote the president’s agenda,” said U.S. Rep. Jared Huffman, referring to Trump’s “Make America Great Again” movement.

Huffman said the movement erases the diversity of America’s religious and nonreligious populations throughout its history and threatens the constitutional protections against government-established religion.

The event "would have the founders rolling in their graves,” said Huffman, a California Democrat. He co-chairs the Congressional Freethought Caucus, which emphasizes separation of church and state.

“They have narrowly defined what it means both to be American and to be Christian, and they are wrapping that in the official sanction of the U.S. government," Huffman said.

He said it's a movement that doesn't speak for all Christians, noting Trump's recent sparring with Pope Leo XIV.

The Rededicate 250 event is occurring in tandem with other White House initiatives appealing to Trump’s loyal base of conservative Christians, particularly white evangelical Protestants.

Several participants — including Graham, White-Cain, Dolan, Barron and Soloveichik — also serve on the Religious Liberty Commission. That Trump-appointed panel is preparing a report on its findings after a year of hearings, many of which were focused on conservative Christian and right-leaning political grievances. Its chair, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, a Republican, repeatedly denies that the Constitution establishes a separation of church and state.

Several participants in Rededicate 250 joined with Trump himself in a Bible-reading marathon.

And a separate Trump administration task force recently alleged discrimination against Christians under Democratic President Joe Biden — a report criticized by progressive groups as “advocacy dressed up as investigation.”

That report alleged that such a bias resulted in heavy fines imposed on two Christian colleges — Grand Canyon University for allegedly deceiving thousands of students over program costs, a decision later reversed, and Liberty University for its handling of crime statistics and sexual assault cases. Choirs from both colleges are performing at Rededicate 250.

About 2 in 10 U.S. adults and about one-quarter of Republicans, said the federal government should declare Christianity the official religion of the nation, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted in April.

Some 43% said the government should not do so, but should promote Christian values, while 38% said it should do neither. The report said 13% of U.S. adults and 18% of Republicans said the government should stop enforcing the separation of church and state.

Historians generally agree that the founders’ religious beliefs varied, that the U.S. Constitution doesn’t establish an official religion and that it was significantly influenced by Enlightenment thinkers.

The Freedom From Religion Foundation, which advocates a strict separation of church and state, hopes to stage a demonstration elsewhere in Washington on the day of the rally.

“This is the government putting on a Christian nationalist event,” said Annie Laurie Gaylor, the foundation's co-president. “Even if it is accepting private money for it, it’s still putting it on. It’s outrageous.”

Brian Kaylor, a Baptist pastor and president and editor-in-chief of Word&Way, a progressive site covering faith and politics, said that while the Continental Congress did call for a day of prayer, the founders crafted the Constitution to prevent the establishment of religion. Two early presidents, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, thought such official events were harmful to religion, he wrote.

The event "simply doesn’t represent what type of nation the founders later decided to create,” Kaylor wrote.

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

FILE - President Donald Trump speaks during the National Prayer Breakfast, at the Capitol in Washington, Feb. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)