Argentinian forward Lionel Messi announced today, Wednesday, that he intends to join "Inter Miami," a club in Major League Soccer, as a free agent after choosing not to renew his contract with French Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain and declining a lucrative offer from Saudi Arabia.
In an interview with "Mundo Deportivo" and a group of sports newspapers, Messi stated, "I have made the decision to go to Miami." He added, "I haven't finalized things 100 percent yet. There are still a few details to sort out, but we have decided to move forward with the deal." He continued, "If the contract with Barcelona didn't work out, I wanted to leave Europe, step out of the spotlight, and think more about my family."
He mentioned, "After winning the World Cup and not being able to go to Barcelona, it’s time to head to Major League Soccer to experience football differently and enjoy things day by day... Clearly, this will happen with the same level of responsibility and desire to win and do things well. But with more peace of mind."
The league expressed its happiness that Messi plans to join Inter Miami this summer. The league stated in a statement, "Although work is still ongoing to finalize an official agreement, we look forward to welcoming one of the greatest footballers of all time to our league."
Messi, who played his last match with Paris Saint-Germain earlier this week, has been linked with a return to Barcelona, but the club struggles with La Liga's financial fair play rules. His move to South Florida means the 35-year-old Argentine will play outside Europe for the first time since joining Barcelona's academy at age 13 before becoming the club's all-time leading scorer with 672 goals.
Messi, who led Argentina to win the World Cup in Qatar last December and has won the Ballon d'Or seven times, a record, has also won the Ligue 1 title twice, along with the French Super Cup in 2022.
A source familiar with the negotiations told Reuters this week that Messi wanted to join a team where he could have an ownership stake. He also aims to maximize his contract with Adidas and Apple, which has a deal with Major League Soccer.
The league receives a fixed revenue of approximately $250 million annually from Apple until a certain subscription threshold is reached, after which it earns a percentage of subscription revenue. Messi’s move to Major League Soccer is expected to increase viewership on the Apple TV streaming service to follow one of the world’s most famous football players.
The forward was linked to a transfer to Saudi club Al-Hilal after receiving an official offer. Saudi Arabia is looking to attract top players from European leagues and successfully persuaded Portuguese striker Cristiano Ronaldo to join Al-Nassr shortly after the World Cup, while French striker Karim Benzema joined Al-Ittihad on Tuesday.
David Beckham, former England captain and one of the first stars to move to America, winning two league titles with Los Angeles Galaxy, is part-owner of Inter Miami.
Messi will conclude his career in Miami with the club at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings, six points behind the ninth position, the last ranking that would give him a chance to qualify for the playoffs. The team fired coach Phil Neville last week after a run of 10 losses and five wins this season, in stark contrast to last season when they finished sixth and qualified for the playoffs that determine the champion.
