Former Manchester City and Chelsea winger Shaun Wright-Phillips has criticized Major League Soccer (MLS) for its continued reliance on aging football stars like Lionel Messi rather than developing long-term strategies to enhance the league's appeal.

Speaking to Football Betting, Wright-Phillips expressed concern about the American league's pattern of recruiting players who are approaching the end of their careers instead of building sustainable talent pipelines.

"But when they do retire, they do the same thing again — they look for the next batch of players at that age," Wright-Phillips stated. "They need to find a longer fix and have a player of that calibre come to America and play his career there. They may have to create their own."

The former England international highlighted how Messi's arrival at Inter Miami in 2023 has attracted other Barcelona legends to the league, including Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba, and Luis Suarez. While acknowledging the star power these signings bring, Wright-Phillips suggested this approach fails to address the league's fundamental development needs.

"At the minute the kingpin is obviously Messi, but [Sergio] Busquets is there as well, [Luis] Suarez, Jordi Alba, they have got a lot of big names over there now," he added.

Messi joined Inter Miami in 2023 after his contract with Paris Saint-Germain expired, instantly becoming the face of American soccer. His arrival significantly boosted MLS viewership and attendance, but Wright-Phillips' comments raise important questions about the sustainability of this star-dependent model.

The critique comes at a time when MLS is working to position itself as a competitive league on the global stage, particularly with the United States co-hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup alongside Canada and Mexico.