Report: Lionel Messi Will Come To MLS And Join Inter Miami

The greatest footballer to ever live is coming to Major League Soccer. According to multiple media reports, Lionel Messi, whose departure from Paris Saint-Germain was announced earlier this year, has decided to join Inter Miami, marking the end of a years-long pursuit by the side that played its first game in MLS back in 2020.

News of Messi’s decision began to trickle in starting on Tuesday, with The Athletic reporting that Messi would eschew a lucrative offer to join the Saudi Pro League to pursue one of two options: Miami or FC Barcelona, the club with which he turned into the best player on the planet.

On Wednesday, the news of Messi’s decision started to crystalize thanks to Guillem Balagué, a Spanish journalist who authored Messi’s biography in 2013, along with a handful of other European journalists.

And then, right around midday on the east coast, word came from Fabrizio Romano that Messi is, indeed, on his way to the United States.

Much has been made of the circumstances around which Miami would be able to afford Messi. There have been reports that every MLS team will pitch in to help Miami afford Messi, with the belief that his addition would help the league’s bottom line. And as The Athletic reported, two of MLS’ main financial partners, Apple and adidas (the latter of which has a lifelong sponsorship with Messi), are rumored to be playing a role in getting him to the States.

Multiple sources involved in or briefed on the high-level league discussions said earlier this week that MLS and Apple have discussed offering Messi a share of the revenue generated by new subscribers to MLS Season Pass, the league’s streaming package on Apple TV+. Both sides view Messi’s potential involvement in Major League Soccer as a boon; Apple and MLS signed a 10-year, $2.5 billion agreement this spring. On Tuesday, Apple revealed that a four-part docuseries chronicling Messi’s five World Cup appearances would stream on Apple TV+.
Adidas, which is among MLS’ largest corporate sponsors, has prepared its own potential arrangement to entice Messi to the United States, multiple sources briefed on those plans told The Athletic on Tuesday. Messi is being offered a profit-sharing agreement with the sportswear giant, those sources said, which would involve the player receiving a cut of any increase in Adidas’ profits resulting from his involvement in MLS.

It is worth mentioning that, on Tuesday, Apple TV+ announced that Messi will be the subject of a four-part docuseries, although there was no mention of this being linked with a move to MLS.

Messi will join a Miami side in the midst of a tumultuous season. The team finds itself in last place in the Eastern Conference on 15 points, although it is only six points behind Charlotte for the final playoff spot and has a game in hand, and last week, Miami fired its head coach, Phil Neville. This would not be the first time the club has a high-profile Argentinian forward in its ranks, as Gonzalo Higuaín, a former teammate of Messi’s at the international level, spent the last 2.5 years with the club before his retirement.

Messi’s bonafides in the world of soccer are unmatched. He holds a record seven Ballon d’Ors, given annually to the best footballer in the world, has won his domestic league in Spain and France a combined 12 times, and is a four-time winner of the Champions League, all from his time as a member of Barcelona. Last year, Messi obtained the final major trophy that had eluded him throughout his career, as he led Argentina to its first World Cup since 1986.