Lionel Messi has announced that he will be joining Major League Soccer and Inter Miami.
After months of speculation and speculation, Messi made his announcement Wednesday that he would join the Miami team led by David Beckham. The franchise has been in existence since its founding but has not yet made any significant impact on the field.
This is likely to change soon. Jorge Mas, one of Inter Miami’s owners, tweeted a picture of a Messi jersey with a dark silhouette, shortly before the Argentinian legend revealed his decision during interviews with Spanish media outlets Mundo Deportivo (Sport) and Mundo Deportivo.
There was a general belief that Messi would eventually choose to play for Al-Hilal, in Saudi Arabia. He would follow his rival and fellow great Cristiano Ronaldo into a country where some clubs are now funded by the sovereign wealth fund. Another possibility was to return to Barcelona, where he spent the majority of his career.
He made a decision that many were surprised by. Messi will be joining MLS. In the interviews on Wednesday, he said that some details needed to be worked out but that he had made the decision to “continue” his path in Miami.
Messi explained, “After winning World Cup but not being able return to Barcelona it was now my turn to travel to the United States league to experience football in a different way.”
After two years at Paris Saint-Germain, the seven-time Ballon d’Or champion — the award is given annually to the world’s best player — decides to move on. Messi, 35, has no more to prove to himself in the game. He completed the one significant box left on his resume in December when he led Argentina to World Cup victory.
Messi is one of the most prolific scorers in sports history, with more than 800 goals scored in his career. In his more than 17-year career as an international player for Argentina, Messi has scored 102 times against 38 different national teams. He scored two goals in the World Cup final last year against France. The match ended officially 3-3, but Argentina won on penalty kicks.
He’s been to the top of the mountain.
Now he is in MLS and a struggling team — last place of the Eastern Conference just a few weeks after the firing Phil Neville, who was chosen by Beckham himself two years ago.
Messi’s decision is the biggest boost for American soccer ever on the professional stage. Pele, Thierry Henri, and even Beckham, who was at the peak of his career, have all come to play in the U.S.
