Lionel Messi rejected the $600m USD a year offer of a Saudi team and instead accepted a deal with Inter Miami.
👉 Background: Lionel Messi is arguably the greatest soccer player of all time. He's won the Ballon D'or award a record of 7 times. But after playing the majority of his soccer at FC Barcelona and recently moved to Paris Saint German - he's on the move again.
👉 What happened: A Saudi team offered Messi $600m USD a year to play for them, but he rejected it. He accepted a deal with Inter Miami instead, the US soccer team part-owned by David Beckham. But Messi's switch to the US soccer league isn't just about soccer...
👉 What else: Messi is reportedly being offered a profit-sharing agreement with Adidas and Apple. And it seems he's not just making this move for the sport but also for potential lucrative business opportunities.
💡We're seeing a growing trend in the sports world: top-level athletes entering into profit-sharing agreements with big brands. This is a shift from traditional endorsement deals, where an athlete is paid to promote a product.
💡When tennis superstar Roger Federer entered a unique partnership with the Swiss running shoe brand ON, he became a co-owner of the company in exchange for his endorsement. Now, the value of his equity is worth more than $300m USD.
💡This model is attractive for athletes, as it gives them an opportunity to capitalise on their brand value over the long-term.
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