Thanks to their Leagues Cup triumph last year, Inter Miami will take flight in the 2024 CONCACAF Champions Cup as they meet Nashville SC in the first leg of their Round of 16 matchup.
Lionel Messi led the club to its first-ever trophy last season in dramatic fashion, in his first month with the Florida side. That qualified them to the continental championship, earning a valuable bye to this stage.
However, it remains to be seen whether Messi, or his aging band of former Barcelona buddies, will take part in this match as Tata Martino looks to get the 36-year-old and his fellow veterans rest amidst a clogged March schedule for both club and country.
Nashville SC, who Inter Miami defeated in the Leagues Cup final last year, progressed past Dominican side Moca FC in dominant fashion, but have struggled so far to begin MLS play, particularly in the attacking third.
Inter Miami vs Nashville SC live stream, TV channel
- TV Channel (English): FS2
- Streaming (English): Fubo, Fox Sports website & app
- TV Channel (Spanish): TUDN
- Streaming (Spanish): Fubo, TUDN website & app
The USA broadcast rights for the 2024 CONCACAF Champions Cup are owned by FOX Sports, who will be televising this match on FS2, which is available to stream on Fubo, who offer a FREE trial for new users.
Meanwhile, there is a Spanish-language broadcast available on TUDN, which is also streaming on Fubo.
What time is Inter Miami vs Nashville SC kickoff?
This CONCACAF Champions Cup Round of 16 first leg match kicks off at GEODIS Park on Thursday, March 7 at 9 p.m. local time in Nashville, TN.
Here's how that time translates across all of the time zones in the United States:
| Date | Kickoff time | |
| Eastern Time | Thu, Mar. 7 | 9 p.m. |
| Central Time | Thu, Mar. 7 | 8 p.m. |
| Mountain Time | Thu, Mar. 7 | 7 p.m. |
| Pacific Time | Thu, Mar. 7 | 6 p.m. |
| Alaska ST | Thu, Mar. 7 | 5 p.m. |
| Hawaii ST | Thu, Mar. 7 | 4 p.m. |
Inter Miami vs Nashville SC lineups, team news
Tata Martino has so far resisted the potentially tempting urge to rest Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez early in the season, leaning on them both and profiting as a result. Yet with the memory of Messi's late-season injury last year still in his mind, this is, in all likelihood, the time where Messi and Suarez take a seat.
New signing Federico Redondo has only just arrived with the club after sorting out his visa issues, and will be unlikely to feature here. DeAndre Yedlin was traded to FC Cincinnati after last weekend's game, and thus the right-back spot is wide open, likely to eventually be filled by a new signing. Noah Allen looks to be moving to center-back but could deputize in the short-term, while young Ian Frey could be an option down the road but is still working on recovery from his third career ACL tear suffered last year.
First-choice goalkeeper Drake Callender has been fantastic to start 2024, and it will be interesting to see if Tata Martino sticks with him for all competitions or utilizes a "cup goalkeeper" and gives CJ Dos Santos a chance to shine.
Inter Miami projected starting lineup (3-5-2): Callender (GK) — Allen, Freire, Kryvtsov — Gressel, D. Gomez, Mota, Sunderland, Taylor — Borgelin, Campana.
The most pressing absence for Nashville is the gaping hole made by Hany Mukhtar who has missed the start of the season with a hip injury. He will reportedly return to training soon, but it would be hasty for Nashville head coach Gary Smith to deploy his most valuable asset so soon in a midweek continental match, and instead will likely wait until at least this coming weekend's league fixture, if not longer.
Injuries to Sam Surridge and Randall Leal aren't as bad as initially feared, but they will still not make the lineup here.
Nashville SC projected starting lineup (3-5-2): Panicco (GK) — MacNaughton, Zimmerman, Maher — Moore, Davis, Muyl, Yearwood, Lovitz — Boyd, Bunbury.
Inter Miami vs Nashville SC betting odds & lines
- Score prediction: Nashville SC 0-0 Inter Miami
These two teams played two extremely tight matches last season, with Lionel Messi featuring in both of them. The Leagues Cup final was pulsating, as both teams peppered the opposition goalkeeper but were held to just a goal apiece. They then played to a scoreless draw in a late August MLS fixture, with Messi ripping off seven shots but failing to put any on target as he tired following the grueling Leagues Cup run.
Here, it's possible that Tata Martino looks to rest some of his aging stars to keep them fit in the long-term, knowing a midweek CCC match could sap them of their ability to keep Inter Miami atop the MLS table. Thus, a low-scoring stalemate could be in store.
| DraftKings (USA) | |
| Nashville win | +185 |
| Draw | +280 |
| Inter Miami win | +105 |
| Both teams to score Y/N | -180 / +120 |
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