Lionel Messi will earn an astronomical fee in the United States - though there are other incentives for him in MLS
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Lionel Messi is set to join Inter Miami on a free transfer after his contract at PSG expired last week, and the MLS side's co-owner Jorge Mas has revealed exactly what the Argentine will earn in the United States.
Mas also offered information on the nature of Messi's contract, after it emerged Apple and Adidas were both important figures in persuading him to join Inter Miami, rather than return to his preferred destination of Barcelona, or even head to Saudi Arabia.
Speaking to Spanish outlet El Pais, Mas revealed Messi will earn between $50-$60m per season at Inter Miami, considered "less than what was offered by Saudi Arabia".
Lionel Messi has ended his two-year tenure at PSG (Image credit: Getty Images)
Indeed, reports suggested that Messi turned down an offer from the Middle East worth in the region of $550m per season, opting instead to head to America as Saudi Arabia never seemed a likely destination for him to finish his football career.
Mas continued, adding that Messi will receive shares in Inter Miami once he retires, while he'll also get a cut of the MLS's global rights broadcasted on Apple TV and of the club's Adidas kit.
Mas said: "I spent three years [working on the deal]. A year and a half very intensely, many conversations with his father Jorge. I got it done at the end of May. David [Beckham, Inter Miami co-owner] talked with Leo, only about soccer issues, because he was playing. I didn't want him to feel pressured.
"We've talked in Barcelona, Miami, Rosario, Doha... I spent the entire World Cup in Qatar, watching Argentina.
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"The Apple contract was very important to close it.Conversations with Apple are going very well and interests are aligning. If soccer grows in the United States, he will benefit."
Beckham, meanwhile, has explained how the announcement of Messi's transfer caused his phone to be bombarded with messages.
David Beckham has described Messi as "one of the best players – if not the best player" in the world (Image credit: PA)
Speaking at the ‘Lessons in Leadership’ seminar, Beckham said: “A couple of weeks ago, I woke up to about a million messages on my phone. I was thinking, ‘What’s gone off? I don’t usually get this many messages.’ All of a sudden, I hear Leo has come out and announced he’s coming to Miami. Obviously, it wasn’t a surprise to me.
“I have always said, from the word go, that if I had the opportunity to bring the best players in the game to Miami, at whatever time of their careers, I would do that. I have always made that commitment to our fans.
"So when I hear that one of the best players – if not the best player – who has won everything in the game, who is still a great player, still young and still doing what he’s doing, wants to play for my team, it’s a massive moment for us.”
Ryan is a staff writer for FourFourTwo, joining the team full-time in October 2022. He first joined Future in December 2020, working across FourFourTwo, Golf Monthly, Rugby World and Advnture's websites, before eventually earning himself a position with FourFourTwo permanently. After graduating from Cardiff University with a degree in Journalism and Communications, Ryan earned a NCTJ qualification to further develop as a writer while a Trainee News Writer at Future.
