Lionel Messi has decided to join Inter Miami this summer, according to reports.
The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner will leave Paris Saint-Germain when his contract expires at the end of June.
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And according to transfer journalist Guillem Balague, he has decided to join David Beckham at Inter Miami.
Messi has been linked with a sensational return to Barcelona in recent weeks, but the club’s current financial state has made it difficult for them to submit an adequate offer.
The forward’s father and agent, Jorge, held talks with Barcelona president Joan Laporta on Monday morning to discuss the possibility of a free transfer.
The 65-year-old even revealed that his son was eager to return to the Nou Camp.
Messi had also been linked with a $A1.9 billion two-year deal at Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia, which AFP reported was “in the final stage of the deal” over the weekend.
“If everything goes well, Messi will sign his new contract and Al-Hilal will announce it before the weekend,” an official was quoted as saying as senior officials flew into Paris to try and nail down the deal.
However, Inter Miami’s offer appears have been too good to turn down.
Spanish outlet SPORT report that he will earn $A80 million-a-year which equates to $A1.55m-a-week.
And according to The Athletic, Adidas, Apple and MLS were all hoping to entice the Argentina captain to the United States this with lucrative commercial proposals.
Adidas – one of the league’s largest corporate sponsors – have reportedly proposed a profit-sharing agreement, meaning the forward will receive a cut of any increase in profits resulting from his MLS involvement.
MLS and Apple have also considered offering Messi a share of the revenue generated by new subscribers to the MLS Season Pass, the league’s streaming package on Apple TV+.
In addition to these commercial proposals, MLS chiefs are understood to be willing to offer Messi the option to purchase a percentage of any team in the league upon his retirement.
Messi was also linked with a move to Saudi Arabia following the announcement of his PSG departure.
However, he didn’t want to join former rivals Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema in the Saudi Pro League.
The 35-year-old already owns a stunning $A13m apartment in Miami which boasts incredible views of the coastline.
This story first appeared in The Sun and was republished with permission.
