Fort Lauderdale, United States (AFP) – At the age of 36 and the dream of lifting a World Cup fulfilled, Lionel Messi began a new adventure this Sunday in the United States league, where he wants to enjoy his last years of football under less pressure.
Messi, presented on Sunday in style as the new idol of Inter Miami, will live his first experience away from the spotlight of European football, in a city culturally and geographically closer to his country.
The soccer star’s presentation had to be postponed for several hours due to a strong storm. However, the water did not stop his fans from welcoming him with applause and cheers.
“Thank you very much to all the people for supporting me,” Messi said before the nearly 18,000 spectators who had come to the DRV PNK stadium in Fort Lauderdale, some 50 km north of Miami.
“I really want to start training, to compete. I have the same desire that I always had to win, to help the club continue to grow,” added the Inter Miami number 10 after posing with his new shirt in hand.
Miami and the North American League (MLS) also offer the Argentine idol a project on which to build his future when he retires from the pitch.
For Messi, who is not currently attracted to the benches of other giants such as Cruyff or Zidane, Inter guarantees him a future ownership stake in the franchise, as part of a contract that is estimated to bring him between 50 and 60 million dollars annually.
This offer is inspired by the one that managed to convince David Beckham in 2007 to leave Real Madrid for the LA Galaxy, which included the option for the Englishman to buy shares of a future franchise at a preferential price, which ended up being Inter Miami.
As a new ‘soccer’ icon, Messi will also be associated with Apple, which has invested heavily in the development of the MLS by beginning to broadcast the North American league on its Apple TV+ platform this year. Messi’s new contract will include a percentage of the proceeds from new international subscribers to the Apple TV+ MLS season pass.
Also as part of this alliance, the platform is preparing a docuseries on the history of Messi in the World Cups, especially his epic triumph in Qatar 2022.
A legendary race
When Beckham landed with his immense popularity in Los Angeles, Messi was considered one of the great promises worldwide at Barcelona, a city he arrived at at the age of 13.
At the end of 2000, the Barcelona club had news of a small prodigy from Rosario (300 km northwest of Buenos Aires), with an unearthly talent and very short stature, who could be recruited if they paid for the growth hormone treatment that Newell’s Old Boys I didn’t guarantee.
In a then unusual decision for such a young player, Barcelona arranged for Messi to join their inferiors and the ‘Flea’ rose to make his debut in 2004 with the first team at the age of 17.
Under the orders of Frank Rijkaard, he won his first Champions League in 2006, in a final against Arsenal in which he did not play, and it was with his successor on the bench, Pep Guardiola, when Messi exploited all his talent together with passing geniuses such as Andres Iniesta and Xavi Hernandez.
Messi went from winger to the position of ‘false 9’ and ended up becoming a total footballer.
In total, he celebrated 672 goals in 778 games with the Barça uniform, winning four Champions Leagues and ten Spanish leagues, among many other trophies.
His career in Barcelona ended bitterly in 2021, when the club did not renew his contract citing serious financial problems, the same ones that also prevented his return this year.
The Argentine took refuge in Paris Saint-Germain where he won two leagues, but did not meet the goal of reigning in Europe despite the golden trident he formed with his former teammate and friend Neymar and Kylian Mbappé.
After not fully adapting in Paris, Messi and his family decided to start a new life in Miami, discarding the offer of the more economically powerful Saudi league, where he would have reissued duels with former Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo.
“After winning the World Cup and not being able to go to Barça, it was time to go to the United States league to experience football in a different way and enjoy day to day more,” Messi explained in June.
His masterpiece
Parallel to his triumphant career in Europe, Messi lived a complex career with the Argentine team, conceding hard blows such as the lost 2014 World Cup finals and the 2007, 2015 and 2016 Copa América.
After that latest disappointment, he came to announce his withdrawal from the national team, but quickly backed down and continued to seek the long-awaited success with the albiceleste, which came in the 2021 Copa América in Brazil.
Freed from the immense pressure he felt when donning the national jersey, Messi signed the crowning achievement of his career, guiding Argentina to their third World Cup crown in Qatar last year.
“Obviously I wanted to close my career with this, I can’t ask for anything anymore,” Messi acknowledged.
Together with his wife, Antonella Roccuzzo, and their children Thiago, Mateo and Ciro, Messi has settled in the country that will host the next Copa América in 2024 and will co-organize the 2026 World Cup, an appointment that the star has not ruled out yet. introduce oneself.
AFP
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