Striking LA hotel workers thank Lionel Messi, Inter Miami for not crossing picket line

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Soccer star Lionel Messi and Inter Miami will no longer stay at a Santa Monica hotel where workers have gone on strike.

Miami had plans to stay at the Fairmont Miramar hotel ahead of its match against LAFC at BMO Stadium Sunday.

"The housekeepers, cooks, bellmen, and servers of the Fairmont Miramar say thank you to the great Lionel Messi and his teammates for agreeing to move from the hotel and stand with the striking workers!" the workers' union Unite Here! Local 11 said in a statement posted to social media.

The MLS Players Association, the union representing the league's players, also applauded Miami's move.

"The MLSPA is proud to stand with the striking workers at the Fairmont Miramar and other LA area hotels, and we applaud the decision by MLS and Inter Miami to change hotels this weekend," the MLSPA said in a statement.

Hundreds of hotel workers shut down a busy downtown Los Angeles intersection during a massive rally on Friday. They are calling for an immediate $5 hourly raise.