Lionel Messi is set to benefit from a ‘little-known’ MLS rule this weekend, which prevents his suspension after reaching the yellow-card threshold, meaning he can feature in Inter Miami’s crunch clash against New England Revolution.

The rule could not have come into play at a better time for the David Beckham-owned side, who currently sit third in the standings, four points behind league leaders Nashville.

New England sit one place above them in second, and a victory for Messi and co on Saturday night would provide a much-needed boost to their hopes of retaining the MLS Cup, which they won for the first time last December.

Unique Rule That Blocks Lionel Messi's Yellow Card Limit Suspension

In any other football league, including the Premier League and Champions League, reaching five yellow cards would ordinarily result in a one-match suspension.

After picking up his fifth of the season last time out in the 42nd minute of a 2-2 draw with Cincinnati, Messi was due to sit out the next fixture. However, Miami's captain stays available thanks to MLS's "good conduct" rule.

Under that rule, a player loses one yellow from his running total if he goes five consecutive league games without being booked. Messi was cautioned in rounds 8, 11, 20, 31 and 33, and the gaps between some of those bookings proved long enough to apply the rule. Two cards duly dropped from his effective tally, according to The Sun.

All five cards still sit on his disciplinary record, but they don't all count towards the total that brings a suspension. That leaves his working tally at just three, so he can play in Inter Miami's penultimate game of the regular season.

Messi Continues to Tear Up the MLS at 39

For Messi, another match to compete in is just another match for him to statpad some more goals and assists, it would seem. Even as he approaches his 40th birthday, the World Cup winner has found his new surroundings all too easy since joining in 2022.

This season, he has managed 25 goals and 12 assists in just 29 league appearances. Back in August, he scored four times against CF Montreal in an astonishing 7-1 victory, just shortly after he had returned to club football following on from supercharging Argentina's run to the 2026 World Cup final.

In total, Messi has 75 goals and 41 assists in 81 MLS matches, and he ranks right up there among the greatest players in the competition's history.