Getty Image
- Lionel Messi is officially heading to Major League Soccer.
- The football legend will acquire a 35% stake in Inter Miami in addition to joining as a player.
- Inter Miami is also co-owned by former Manchester United and Real Madrid star David Beckham.
Lionel Messi, considered to be one of the greatest soccer players to ever live, is set to acquire 35% of Major League Soccer’s Inter Miami club and will begin playing for the club beginning in the summer of 2023. Inter Miami CF, which was founded in 2018 and began play in 2020, boasts former English soccer star David Beckham as one of its owners.
During his historic career, Messi has won a record seven Ballon d’Or awards (one more than Ronaldo), ten La Liga titles, and four Champions League titles.
Lionel Messi to acquire a 35% stake in Inter Miami CF and will start playing for the team next summer
Soccer star Lionel Messi will acquire 35% of Major League Soccer's Inter Miami and join the team summer 2023, reports @Alex_candal.
— Mark J. Burns (@markjburns88) May 17, 2022
After spending the majority of his career in Barcelona, the 34-year-old Messi joined Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain in 2021 due to financial difficulties at the Catalonian club.
Given the historic standards he set over the previous decade-plus, Messi’s first season in Paris has largely been a disappointment as the team — which also boasts the world-class talents of Kylian Mbappe and Neymar, among others — was knocked out of the Champions League in the Round of 16 by Real Madrid. Across 25 Ligue 1 games and seven Champions League games this year, Messi has registered 13 goals and 18 assists.
Still, despite Messi’s difficult 2021, he’ll still be the greatest player to ever wear an MLS kit when he joins Inter Miami at the age of 35-years-old next summer.