Bringing Lionel Messi to Major League Soccer might’ve been difficult, but David Beckham wouldn’t have it any other way.
On an episode of Stick to Football on Gary Neville’s YouTube channel, The Overlap, Beckham spoke about the number of ‘moving parts’ that needed to happen in order to get Messi to sign with the team: “There was a lot of moving parts. A lot of people had to help us with it.”
Beckham also went on to talk about the Argentine’s contract details: “Apple [was] involved, Adidas [was] involved, so there are different contracts.”
Inter Miami managing owner Jorge Mas has spoken about the different contracts that the club needed in place to sign Messi. According to the Miami Herald, Inter Miami is reportedly paying Messi around 60 million USD a year with side deals involving commercial partners Apple and Adidas.
Messi’s player contract will run til the end of 2025, with an option to extend in 2026.
Bend it like… Messi?
It took Inter Miami many years of courting to bring the Argentine superstar to MLS.
Speaking to a group of reporters in the days before Messi’s Miami debut on July 21st, MLS commissioner Don Garber praised Miami’s front office, expressing his disbelief in the South Floridian club to get the deal done: “I have to say. … I didn’t think that [Mas] wouldn’t be able to deliver it. But here we are today with a player that I think without doubt is a not only a generational player, but in my opinion, the greatest of all time.”
Messi’s impact on the league has been felt.
He’s raised the profile of MLS around the world and led Inter Miami to their first trophy in club history. Though the team won’t make the playoffs this year, 2024 shows promise.
With a full offseason of rest, Messi and Inter Miami could be able to continue the success they saw in the Leagues Cup and then some.