Inter Miami is the latest destination for Lionel Messi. The magician departs the Parisian club PSG and heads up across the pacific ocean to the United States. The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner brings the world’s attention with him to the MLS. He is a player-extraordinaire and thus his contract is bound to be unique too. As reports surfaced after the news broke, La Pulga might have stakes in Apple shares, an unprecedented clause in the footballing universe that might help him earn more money than initially expected.
Lionel Messi has always commanded the spotlight of the world on him. Messi joined hands with David Beckham, the co-owner of Inter Miami and a legend of the game. Inter Miami had to fight off interest from Saudi Arabia and its financial muscle. They have teamed up with Apple to land the superstar.
The Argentinian legend, who has scored over 800 goals in his career was earning $45 million at PSG. MLS has a stringent salary cap and roster rules and cannot directly accommodate players with such high wages. Thus Miami is opting to create a three-year contract totaling $150 million, paid gradually over time.
This contract includes base wages, equity in the team, and additional bonuses. In order to further lure Messi, Apple, the broadcasting partner of MLS, has opted to create profit-sharing contracts. Messi shall gain a chunk from the total profit of Apple.
Apple plan to allocate a share of their earnings from MLS Season Pass, the league’s Apple TV+ streaming package to Lionel Messi. His star power tends to attract a humongous amount of viewers. Apple already has announced a documentary series featuring Messi and his world cup saga- from his debut at the 2006 world cup to his eventual crowning moment at the 2022 world cup. Inter Miami and Apple, thus are finalizing the terms of the lucrative but complex deal.
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Saudi Arabia desires their own super league
Saudi Arabia is chasing after the superstars of the footballing world. With Cristiano Ronaldo at Al Nassr and Karim Benzema joining Al Ittihad, the Saudi league is flourishing. Saudi Arabia also chased superstar Lionel Messi, offering him $541 million a year. The Saudi government has backed their chase for these players. They have proceeded to invest in 4 clubs- Al Ittihad, Al Ahli, Al Hilal, and Al Nassr through the Public Investment Fund.
The Saudi government has taken over 75% of the club’s ownership under the privatization project, led by crown prince Mohammed bin Salman. This results in almost $600 billion being poured into these 4 clubs by the Saudi sovereign fund, the PIF. This is to increase the level of the Saudi league to among the top ten leagues in the world.
Saudi League is not constrained by UEFA rules and is free to make aggressive player transfer moves. The Saudi clubs are not required to adhere to any salary or transfer restrictions. Thus, they seek to entice the top players in the world with massive wages and are not reluctant to pay extravagant transfer fees.
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