Student Commentary
Published on July 10, 2023

Soccer superstar, Lionel Messi, agrees to blockbuster deal in a move that shakes up MLS


Diana Hymowitz is a student at Temple University Beasley School of Law. She is a member of the Sports and Entertainment Law Society and serves as a Sports Law Research Assistant. She has previously worked for the Washington Commanders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Major League Baseball, The University of Pennsylvania Football Team, Capital City Go-Go, Washington’s Wizards G-League Affiliate, and University at Albany Football Team. Twitter: @DianaHy17

Soccer superstar Lionel Messi has announced that he is joining Major League Soccer club Inter Miami. This is a blockbuster announcement that shocked the soccer world especially since it followed rumors of Messi rejoining Barcelona or signing a megadeal with Saudi Arabia.

Messi, highly regarded as one of the greatest soccer players of all time, said of the shocking decision in an exclusive interview on the Mundo Deportivo website that “if it didn’t work out in Barcelona, I wanted to leave Europe, take the focus away from myself and focus more on my family.”

The deal is said to run from July 2023 to December 2025. According to Inter Miami’s co-owner Jorge Mas the superstar will earn between $50 million and $60 million a year. The deal is said to include shares in the soccer club when he retires as well as contributions such as revenue and profit sharing from MLS sponsors Adidas and Apple based on the growth of the league now that Messi has joined. At this time, MLS will not be subsidizing the deal. The whopping $50-$60 million a year for Messi will make him the highest paid Major League Soccer Player by over $40 million, with the next highest paid player being Xherdan Shaqiri who earns a guaranteed annual salary of $8,153,000. In addition to his annual salary from Inter Miami, Messi will continue to be paid by FC Barcelona until 2025 due to outstanding payments on his previous contract with the club.

Despite it being unclear when Messi will make his debut, the teams set to host Miami this season saw massive growth in ticket prices and sales. According to data from VividSeats, ticket prices have risen nearly 1000% percent for certain matches. Tickets for Inter Miami’s July 21 Leagues Cup game against Cruz Azul, the target date for Messi’s first game with Inter Miami, have jumped from $120 to $1,248 the week of the signing, a price increase of 922%. Tickets for the in-league game against the New York Red Bulls on August 25 now cost $983, a stark increase from the $99 tickets listed prior to Messi’s signing.

Messi looks to turn around an Inter Miami club that has recently hired new head coach Gerardo Martino and is in last place in the Eastern Conference with a 5-1-13 record with 19 out of their 34 games played.

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