Inter Miami CF still has a chance to bring Lionel Messi to MLS

Lionel Messi is potentially the greatest to ever do it. At the very least, he's on a very short list of footballers that includes Pele, Cristiano Ronaldo, Diego Maradona, Kylian Mbappe and perhaps no one else.

He's an international superstar of the highest order in the sport, and for a league like MLS, bringing him into the fold could be a game-changer. Seriously, it would be even bigger than David Beckham with the LA Galaxy or Wayne Rooney in D.C.

It was reported in Oct. 2022 that talks between Inter Miami CF and Messi were at such an advanced point that the franchise actually felt the superstar would sign "in the coming months." The 35-year-old currently plays for the French club Paris Saint-Germain, but his contract will expire this summer. And though it's now being reported that PSG and Messi are in contract extension talks, Paul Tenorio and Pablo Maurer of The Athletic are saying that Inter Miami is still in the conversation.

So much so, in fact, that MLS commissioner Don Garber spoke to the two reporters on the matter.

“You’re dealing with perhaps the most special player in the history of the game,” Garber said. “So when there’s rumors of him connected to Miami, that’s great. And if it could happen, it would be terrific for MLS, it would be terrific for Messi and his family, and like everything with us, we try to run every opportunity down. I can’t give any more details than that because we don’t have them.”

Details are sparse at the moment, but if Miami is going to land Messi, it's going to cost a ton of cheddar.

Messi reportedly makes $43.6 million per season and he could fetch close to $100 million a season playing in Saudi Arabia. Lorenzo Insign of Toronto FC is the MLS's highest-paid player right now and he has a base salary of $14 million. 

Still, Garber thinks MLS can compete financially for Messi.

"We’re gonna have to structure a deal that’s going to compensate him in ways that he and his family expect," Garber said. "What that is? Honestly, we don’t know today, but he’s probably not going to be a [targeted allocation money] player.”