Bringing Messi, 35, to the US would also have major repercussions for Miami and Major League Soccer, as the city gears up to be one of the World Cup’s host cities in 2026.
It would mark the first time Messi has played club soccer outside Europe in his storied professional career. The World Cup winner starred for Barcelona since he was a teenager, winning multiple league titles and the Champions League. He left to play for Paris Saint-Germain in 2021, and it was reported he was seeking a return to the Catalan team.
For Apple it would strengthen its soccer strategy. The company forged a $US2.5 billion 10-year deal with Major League Soccer to show games on its TV+ platform. And one of the streaming service’s most popular TV series, Ted Lasso, follows a fictional Premier League team coached by an American.
For Adidas it would be a coup at a time the German brand is struggling after the collapse of its Yeezy franchise following its cancelled partnership with Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West.
Adidas has lost considerable market share in the US in recent years to Nike Inc. and smaller brands like Hoka. Soccer is a bright spot for the company in the US, which is the world’s single largest sports market.
The German company extended its contract with the MLS earlier this year, a move that chief executive officer Bjorn Gulden has called “very, very, very important”. Adidas has ambitions of combining soccer with fashion and music to create a sort of soccer “street culture” around the world on par with what’s seen in basketball.
“That’s why it’s important to protect our number one position in soccer in the big markets,” Gulden said last month on a call with analysts.
Bloomberg