PayPal Park in San Jose, Calif., in an undated image. (Dan McMenamin/Bay City News)

International soccer star Lionel Messi and his Inter Miami CF team are in the Bay Area to play the San Jose Earthquakes in a match on Wednesday that is expected to bring big crowds out to the Earthquakes’ PayPal Park.

Messi, who helped Argentina win the most recent World Cup in 2022, came to America’s pro league Major League Soccer in 2023 and was the league’s Most Valuable Player last year.

Bay Area soccer fans eager to see Messi in action have led to Wednesday’s match being sold out of single-game tickets, though the Earthquakes said limited season tickets are still available that include tickets to the match against Inter Miami.

Miami is currently in fourth place in the MLS Eastern Conference with a record of 6 wins, 2 losses and 3 ties, while San Jose is in seventh place in the Western Conference at 5-6-1.

Wednesday’s match kicks off at 7:30 p.m. Gates open at PayPal Park in San Jose at 5:30 p.m. and there will be food trucks and other activities available.

Dan McMenamin is the managing editor at Bay City News, directing daily news coverage of the 12-county greater Bay Area. He has worked for BCN since 2008 and has been managing editor since 2014 after previously serving as BCN’s San Francisco bureau reporter. A UC Davis graduate, he came to BCN after working for a newspaper and nonprofit in the Davis area. He handles staffing, including coaching of our interns, day-to-day coverage decisions and management of the newswire.