“In Saudi, the Club Decides” – Fabrizio Romano Decodes Why Lionel Messi Rejected Al Hilal’s Billionaire Offer To Join Inter Miami

Not many people can say no to a billion dollars. Well if you aren’t Lionel Messi, that is! The Argentine superstar had a blockbuster offer to join Al Hilal last summer with the Saudi Arabian club offering Messi $1.5 billion to join the team. However, La Pulga was unfazed in front of the substantial offer, as he elected to join Inter Miami for a much lesser fee.

Prominent soccer journalist & enthusiast Fabrizio Romano broke down Lionel Messi snubbing Al Hilal’s offer during his podcast appearance on Mics. The Italian journalist claimed that money was never a driving factor for the Argentine and he was always leaning towards Miami’s offer from the beginning.

Romano stated, “I think it was not a financial thing, it was just family reasons. Also because he was close with David Beckham and many other players who were good friends like Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba. So he had the opportunity to create what he wanted there that in Saudi is different. In Saudi, you join a big club, and it’s the club deciding who they want to bring in other than the player himself.”

According to reports, Al Hilal had offered Lionel Messi a three-year contract worth $1.5 billion with the player set to receive $500 million per year. However, the Argentine wasn’t too convinced with the life in Saudi Arabia for his family and elected to move over to the United States for the final phase of his career.

Breaking down the offer from MLS and Inter Miami that made Lionel Messi snub Al Hilal!

Okay, while Lionel Messi was already convinced with the MLS project, it’s not easy to say no to a billion dollars on a whim. To nail the deal, Inter Miami and MLS came up with a concrete plan to land the superstar. According to reports, the base value of the deal is somewhere around $150 million spanning over 2 years and 6 months. While this is almost 10 times less than Al Hilal’s offers, the added incentives played a big role in securing Messi’s signatures.

Both Apple and Adidas have offered Lionel Messi profit-sharing agreements on merchandising and subscriptions to MLS Season Pass. Notably, this isn’t limited to just Inter Miami, with Messi set to receive a net value from all teams. On top of that, La Pulga also has the option to exercise his ownership stake in the franchise after he is done playing with Inter Miami. The player can also add an optional year to his contract if he wants to be in the United States during the 2026 World Cup. Considering, everything at the plate, it surely isn’t a bad offer!