Paris Saint-Germain star Lionel Messi will play in Saudi Arabia next season, a Saudi source involved in the negotiations told AFP on Tuesday, calling the deal “enormous”.
The Argentine footballer’s departure to the wealthy Gulf kingdom is “a done deal. He will play in Saudi Arabia,” the source said on condition of anonymity.
“The contract is exceptional. He’s huge. “We are still in the process of finalizing a few details,” she added, without revealing the name of the club concerned.
When asked by AFP, PSG limited themselves to reminding them that Messi’s contract expired on June 30.
“If the club had wanted to extend his contract, it would have happened sooner,” revealed another source at the Parisian club. According to this second source, the Argentine will keep his contract end as planned and no official announcement from the club is expected.
Lionel Messi, who is already signed with the Saudi tourism bureau to promote him on their social media, should find Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo, who has been a Al-Nassr player since the winter transfer window, in the local league.
Several media outlets have in recent days mentioned the existence of a fantastic €400m-a-year offer from rivals Al-Hilal to bring Messi and restore the mythical rivalry with CR7 when the two players played in the Spanish league.
“Negotiations didn’t take as long as Ronaldo,” the Saudi source said, adding that, like Ronaldo, the financial package came from the Saudi sovereign wealth fund (PIF).
The Portuguese striker’s sensational deal in Saudi Arabia, valued at €400m until June 2025, made him the world’s highest-paid sportsman in 2023, according to the annual Forbes rankings.