Inter Miami midfielder Casemiro (5) holds his jersey as he is introduced to fans at Nu Stadium on July 30, 2026, in Miami, Fla.
Photo by Matias J. Ocner
mocner@miamiherald.com
Inter Miami introduced accomplished Brazilian midfielder Casemiro on Thursday at Nu Stadium to a tunnel lined with fans. After walking onto the pitch with his family to a loud group of Inter Miami supporters, Casemiro sat in front of the media for his first press conference since joining the team.
“It was a very important decision to make,” said Casemiro, who signed with Inter Miami last week after four seasons with Manchester United “For the very first time in my career, I was free to select where I wanted to play. My family supported me a lot. My wife and my kids helped me a lot. I have always loved Miami. This was a place where I wanted to play at some point. Inter Miami gave me the opportunity. I’m where I want to be. I’m very happy.”
Casemiro’s 35-minute introductory press conference came days after he made his Inter Miami debut in Saturday’s 1-0 road win over Montreal FC. He played 90-plus minutes and made an immediate impact with 77 touches and nine passes into the final third.
But Casemiro’s arrival comes with some controversy, as the MLS is investigating a tampering allegation against Inter Miami, which could lead to sanctions.
“Major League Soccer is reviewing a tampering allegation against Inter Miami CF,” the MLS statement read. “The league is gathering all relevant information and will refrain from further comment until the review is complete. While Inter Miami CF and the L.A. Galaxy have reached a settlement for the discovery priority to sign Casemiro, the terms will be released upon conclusion of the tampering investigation.”
Under MLS rules, a club is not allowed to have contact with a player on another team’s “discovery list” and the L.A. Galaxy had priority to negotiate with Casemiro under MLS’s “discovery rights” rule, which is meant to prevent teams from engaging in bidding wars over players. Teams can have up to five players on their discovery lists.
If a club wants to sign a player on the discovery list of another club, it may offer that club $50,000 in general allocation money in exchange for the right to sign the player.
The club with the player on its discovery list then has five days (or three days during the secondary transfer window) to either accept the $50,000 and pass on the right to sign the player or make the player a reasonable offer. At that point, if a deal is not reached, the two clubs negotiate for the right to sign the player.
“The rules are the rules, and we abided by those rules to the letter of the law,” Inter Miami managing owner Jorge Mas said while sitting next to Casemiro on Thursday. “We entered into no negotiations or conversations with Casemiro or his representatives previous to us talking to the league and talking to the L.A. Galaxy about working out how we’re able to get the green light to negotiate with Casemiro.”
Inter Miami managing owner Jorge Mas and midfielder Casemiro (5) hold a jersey during Casemiro’s introductory press conference at Nu Stadium on Thursday, July 30, 2026, in Miami, Fla. Photo by Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com
Last summer, the Vancouver Whitecaps acquired the MLS discovery rights for German and Bayern Munich legend Thomas Muller from FC Cincinnati for $400,000. And in 2024, The L.A. Galaxy paid Charlotte FC $400,000 to acquire the discovery priority rights for Marco Reus.
A source with knowledge of the Inter Miami and Galaxy negotiations told the Miami Herald’s Michelle Kaufman, the fee Miami must pay to the Galaxy is significantly higher. If MLS imposes sanctions, the deal could be even more costly.
“We went and negotiated with the L.A. Galaxy, and we reached an agreement with the L.A. Galaxy,” Mas added. “There was a tampering accusation made, which we did not tamper at all whatsoever.”
Mas also revealed Thursday that he has “attempted for over two years to have the [discovery rights] rules changed in the league.”
“I do not think that the discovery process benefits any Major League Soccer team other than entering into negotiations over fees over players,” Mas said. “So, if that rule will change or not change, we will see. But I especially do not feel that this league having a list of players that’s not made public is something that we should move forward with.
“The intent of this rule was always to not have multiple MLS teams negotiating against each other for one player. But we’re not competing with other MLS teams for this level of athlete. We’re actually competing in a global marketplace. There were multiple teams that pursued Casemiro from other leagues, and that’s our competition. It’s not with an MLS club.”
Casemiro said in a video released by Inter Miami last week that he made it clear to the L.A. Galaxy that the only MLS team he wanted to play for was Inter Miami due to his love for the city and its proximity to family and friends, the club’s ambition and the desire to play alongside Lionel Messi.
Casemiro, 34, reiterated those feelings on Thursday.
“I had so many options. But right now, I’m where I want to be,” he said. “So I want to play with spirit, to be with [Messi], to help him win, to make him greater and to help him be the god of soccer.”
Casemiro, a five-time UEFA Champions League-winning midfielder, joined Inter Miami as a free agent and will remain under contract through May 2027 with an extension option until June 2029. He played for Brazil in the World Cup this summer.
Casemiro spent the past three years with Manchester United and eight years before that with Real Madrid, where he was one of the best defensive midfielders in the game.
“Casemiro, I admire him a lot,” Mas said. “I’ve been a big fan of his for many years. He’s a champ. He’s won different trophies. He has been playing for important clubs, but also for his national team. … I’m very happy to be here with Casemiro.”
While Casemiro has already played one game with Inter Miami, he’s expected to play his first home game with Inter Miami on Saturday against the Columbus Crew.
“I want to win and raise trophies,” Casemiro said to close Thursday’s press conference.
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Anthony Chiang covers the Miami Heat for the Miami Herald. He attended the University of Florida and was born and raised in Miami.