Major League Soccer (MLS) announced this week that Inter Miami CF has claimed four end-of-year awards, leading all MLS clubs, headlined by Chief Business Officer Xavier Asensi being named Doug Hamilton Executive of the Year. The Club has also been awarded Digital and Social Media Team of the Year, Marketing Initiative of the Year, and Security Team of the Year for 2023.
Asensi manages the Club’s direction across all business verticals and his strategic leadership and vision stands as a fundamental catalyst propelling Inter Miami to exponential heights. Asensi joined Inter Miami CF from FC Barcelona in 2021 and within three years of his arrival, the Club has tripled revenues, signed now-eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi, and World Cup champion Sergio Busquets, and commenced Miami Freedom Park's development after securing a stadium site. Asensi has played a significant role in these major milestones, including signing groundbreaking partnership deals (including several of the largest deals in Major League Soccer history), planning the Club’s first international tour for the 2024 preseason, and most notably landing Messi in South Florida and maximizing his impact.
Under his leadership, Inter Miami has already sold out of Season Tickets for 2024 with record renewal rates, more than two months before the start of the season and even before the announcement of the 2024 MLS schedule. Inter Miami CF has also been awarded Digital and Social Media Team of the Year, Marketing Initiative of the Year, and Security Team of the Year for 2023 under Asensi’s stewardship.
Notably, Inter Miami has accumulated more than 15 million followers on Instagram, making it the most followed team on the platform among NFL, NHL, MLB, and MLS teams, as well as prominent European clubs. The Club is also the most followed individual sports team on TikTok in the US with more than 7 million followers, while its X (formerly Twitter) page accounts for more than half of all interactions MLS clubs have on the platform in 2023.
Inter Miami’s Sí Campaign, meanwhile, won the Marketing Initiative of the Year. Born of the idea of confirmation that Messi was signing for Inter Miami after years of rumors, the Sí Campaign connected the catalyst of MesSÍ, to the historic signings of Sergio “BuSí” Busquets and Jordi “JorSí” Alba, as well as the song “Sí, Muchachos”, Messi’s unveiling event La PresentaSÍon, and the Club’s first title with the Sí, Campeones story.
The Inter Miami CF Security Team also earned best-in-class honors, being named the MLS Security Team of the Year after planning and implementing an updated strategy to meet the security demands presented by the Club’s exciting summer additions. Notably, the team’s matchday security routine was a success that was replicated at venues throughout the league on matchdays featuring Inter Miami on the road.
