Lionel Messi Contract: Details, Duration and What It Means for Inter Miami | OneFootball

Lionel Messi’s move to Major League Soccer team Inter Miami in 2023 was groundbreaking in more ways than one.

Not only did it see MLS and Miami secure the services of who many believe to be the greatest soccer player of all time, but the Argentine's deal also set records for its financial value and structure.

Here, we’ve outlined everything you need to know about Messi’s monumental Miami contract, including its length, worth, and significance for both the player and MLS.

How Long Is Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami Contract

Messi joined Inter Miami in 2023. / David Gonzales-Imagn Images

Messi joined Inter Miami midway through the 2023 season in June, signing a contract that would keep him at the club until the end of the 2025 MLS season.

Speaking in November 2024, however, Miami's managing director Jorge Mas said that he hopes to keep the former FC Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain star in Florida for the 2026 season, which will mark Miami's debut in its new stadium—Miami Freedom Park.

“He’s under contract through 2025. Leo and I will sit and we’ll discuss the future,” Mas told reporters.

“As I’ve said before, and I will repeat it now: I fully expect that in the opening of our new stadium in 2026 in Miami and the opening of our 2026 season, hopefully after a trophy-laden 2025 season, that Lionel Messi will be our No. 10," he said.

Lionel Messi’s Salary and Financial Package

Given his salary, no wonder Messi looks happy in Miami. / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Messi's contract with Miami is the most lucrative in MLS history.

According to the MLS Players Association, the Argentine earns a base annual salary of $12 million, though he actually takes home $20,446,667 in guaranteed compensation.

His earnings surpass the entire payroll of most other MLS teams and exceed those of the league's second-highest earner—Toronto's Lorenzo Insigne—by just over $5 million.

On top of his regular earnings, however, Messi also received a signing bonus for joining Miami and will receive equity in the club upon his retirement—a unique feature in the sports contract landscape. According to Sportico, this brings the total value of his initial two-and-a-half-year package with Miami to $150 million.

Off the field in 2024, Messi earned an additional $79 million, reported Forbes, thanks to deals with Adidas, Hard Rock International, Apple TV, and others. The latter partnership sees him take a cut of MLS’s $250 million per year deal with the broadcaster.

The Impact of Lionel Messi's Inter Miami Contract

Lionel Messi. / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

While Miami is paying Messi some serious money, the 37-year-old's presence in MLS seems to have been a win for everyone involved—both on and off the field.

On it, Messi has helped Miami secure its first-ever trophies, lifting the Leagues Cup in 2023 and the Supporters' Shield in 2024.

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Off the field, Miami has attracted a new wave of local and global fans, leading to it revenue, according to ESPN, soaring from $50 to $60 million in 2022 to a projected figure of over $200 million in 2024. The club also saw a 72% increase in its overall value, rising to $1.03 billion—propelling it to 17th on Forbes' list of the world's most valuable soccer teams.

Xavier Asensi, Inter Miami's president of business operations, told ESPN that the difference in the club since signing Messi is "completely night and day."

"What we are doing now with the team is totally on an international level," he explained. "Now we are talking about the global interest. Now it is football, not soccer."

MLS has also benefitted as a whole since Messi's arrival, with the league achieving record-breaking milestones in attendance, sponsorship, retail, social media and digital media in 2024.

The league has also experienced a sponsorship boom, with sponsorship revenue for the league and its clubs reaching $665 million in 2024, a 13% increase from the previous year and a 44% rise compared to 2022.