- Argentine superstar Lionel Messi has rejected a very lucrative offer from Saudi Arabia to ply his trade with American soccer club Inter Miami.
- The announcement came after months of intense speculation over whether the 35-year-old could return to his beloved Barcelona, the Spanish club he moved to join as a teenager.
- “If it was about the money, I’d go for it [Saudi] “Arabia or anywhere else they offered me a lot of money,” Messi said.
Messi announced on Wednesday that he would sign with Inter Miami, the Major League Soccer team, to choose the United States as his next destination during the Barcelona meeting or a huge deal to play in Saudi Arabia.
Giorgio Vieira | Afp | Getty Images
Argentine superstar Lionel Messi, widely regarded as one of the greatest soccer players of all time, has turned down a highly lucrative offer from Saudi Arabia, choosing instead to ply his trade with Inter Miami soccer club.
The announcement came after months of intense speculation over whether the 35-year-old could return to his beloved Barcelona, the Spanish club he moved to join as a teenager but reluctantly left in 2021. But it always seemed unlikely, given the club’s . A long-standing problem with the handling of La Liga’s Financial Fair Play rules.
It was widely believed that Messi, who led Argentina to victory in the World Cup last year, would choose to play with Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia after parting ways with French champions Paris Saint-Germain.
Unexpectedly, Messi said on Wednesday that he has chosen the Miami franchise.
“I made a decision that I was going to Miami,” Messi revealed in an interview with Spanish news outlets Mundo Deportivo and Sport, according to a translation.
“I still haven’t closed it 100%. I still miss some things, but we decided to move on. If Barcelona didn’t succeed, I wanted to leave Europe, get out of the spotlight and think more about my family.”
Messi said he felt it was time to join the MLS to “experience football in a different way and enjoy the day”.
He added, “Obviously, with the same responsibility and desire to want to win and always do things well. But with more peace of mind.”
The deal means the world soccer icon will not follow longtime rival Cristiano Ronaldo and French forward Karim Benzema in moving to Saudi Arabia.
The Gulf country, which is fast becoming a major player in the world of sports, pulled off something of a coup just 24 hours ago with the announcement of a surprising merger between the LIV spinoff golf circuit and the US-based PGA Tour.
Missy A. refused mentioned A $400m-a-year deal, a huge sum even by football standards, deals a blow to Riyadh’s ambitions to attract the sport’s biggest players to its top league.
Last month, Messi’s father and agent, Jorge Messi to reject Speculation that his son was about to move to Saudi Arabia after French media reported it was a “done deal”.
It came after Paris Saint-Germain suspended Messi, who was revealed last year as ambassador for tourism to the oil-rich country, for taking a trip to Saudi Arabia and missing a training session as a result.
“If it was about the money, I’d go for it [Saudi] “Arabia or anywhere else they offered me a lot of money,” Messi said.
DRV PNK Stadium where the Inter Miami professional soccer team plays games on June 07, 2023 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Joe Riddle | Getty Images News | Getty Images
One of Inter Miami’s owners, Jorge Mas, preceded Messi’s announcement by sharing a photo of his shaded jersey, fueling speculation of the player’s imminent arrival at South Beach, Florida.
“We are delighted that Lionel Messi has stated that he intends to join Inter Miami and Major League Soccer this summer,” MLS said He said in a statement, adding that some subtleties still need to be ironed out.
“While work continues to finalize a formal agreement, we look forward to welcoming one of the greatest footballers of all time to our league,” the league said.
“Student. Incurable problem solver. Amateur baconaholic. Introvert. Infuriatingly humble music fanatic.”