By Rik Sharma
Agence France-Presse
BARCELONA, Spain (AFP) — Lionel Messi on Wednesday announced he will sign for Major League Soccer side Inter Miami, choosing the United States as his next destination over a Barcelona reunion or blockbuster deal to play in Saudi Arabia.
The Argentine forward, 35, has spent the last two seasons at Paris Saint-Germain, playing his final game for the club on Saturday, after moving from Barcelona in 2021, where he spent the majority of his career.
MLS and Inter Miami confirmed the news on social media, although the American league noted “work remains to finalize a formal agreement”.
“I’ve taken the decision that I am going to Miami, I don’t have (the deal) 100 percent sealed or maybe there’s something left to do, but we decided to continue our path there,” Messi told Spanish newspapers Diario Sport and Mundo Deportivo.
“(I decided) to leave Europe…
“After winning the World Cup and not being able to go to Barca, it’s time to go to MLS to live football in a different way and enjoy my day to day life more.
“Obviously with the same responsibility and desire to win, and to do things well, but with more calm.”
Messi is a seven-time Ballon d’Or winner and is expected to earn the individual accolade once more after leading Argentina to World Cup glory in Qatar in December 2022.
The football world was eagerly awaiting Messi’s decision after PSG confirmed this week the playmaker, widely considered the best player in the history of football, was departing.
The romance of a Barcelona return and prospect of eye-watering riches in Saudi Arabia fell by the wayside as Messi opted to join MLS, with sun-soaked Miami a city he has holidayed in on previous occasions.
“If it had been a question of money, I would have gone to Saudi Arabia or elsewhere,” said Messi.
“It seemed a lot of money and the truth is that my decision went another way and not for money.”
Inter Miami, co-owned by former England international David Beckham and founded in 2018, sacked coach Phil Neville last week with the team bottom of the Eastern Conference.
Some reports say key MLS sponsors including sportswear brand Adidas and Apple TV, who own the league’s domestic broadcasting rights, may be contributing to his deal.
Messi, who turns 36 later in June, is now set to finish his club career outside the spotlight of top-level European football.
– ‘Wanted to come back’ –
Messi said he would have loved to return to Barcelona but was afraid that the financial complications which stopped the Catalan club extending his deal in 2021 would interfere again.
“I really wanted to come back, I was really looking forward to it,” continued Messi.
“But, on the other hand, after having lived through what I lived through, after the exit I had… I didn’t want to go through the same situation again and have to wait to see what was going to happen.
“I didn’t want to leave my future in the hands of others. Somehow, I wanted to make my own decision for myself, for my family.
“Even though I heard that they said that the league had accepted everything and that everything was OK for me to come back… there were still a lot of other things missing.
“I heard that they had to sell players or lower the salaries of (other) players and the truth is that I didn’t want to go through that, nor be responsible or have anything to do with all that.”
Messi said he plans to live in Barcelona again in the future and be involved with his former side in some way.
“I don’t know at what moment and when but hopefully I can return one day to contribute something to the club,” he said.
Before that, though, Messi will give the growth of soccer in the United States another jolt of momentum with his arrival, which comes just three years ahead of the 2026 World Cup being co-hosted in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
“We look forward to welcoming one of the greatest soccer players of all time to our League,” Major League Soccer said in a statement.
– Glittering history –
Messi joined Barcelona’s academy at 13 years old after leaving his homeland.
He became the Catalan club’s greatest icon, scoring a record 672 goals in 778 games, winning 35 trophies, including four Champions League triumphs and 10 La Liga titles.
After his unexpected Barcelona departure, Messi linked up in Paris with his former team-mate Neymar and Kylian Mbappe in a star-studded attacking trident, but PSG flattered to deceive during his time at the club.
While they won Ligue 1 twice, they suffered two devastating Champions League last 16 exits, with Messi a target for supporters’ anger.
Already being booed by supporters, he took an unauthorized trip to Saudi Arabia where he is a tourism ambassador, and was fined and suspended by PSG.
Messi returned from suspension to play his 75th and final match for PSG last weekend in a defeat by Clermont, during which he was jeered once more and could not add to his tally of 32 goals for the club.
“They were two years, which were in general, difficult for me, but they are behind me now,” said Messi.
© Agence France-Presse