French soccer phenom Kylian Mbappé is being wooed by Saudi Arabia’s pro soccer team Al Hilal, which has offered a deal so big it would eclipse the combined salaries of several American pro sports teams.
Al Hilal, which missed out on netting Argentine soccer star Lionel Messi, bid a record $322 million for Mbappé, according to multiple reports.
The Saudi team is proposing a massive pay deal of $776 million for one year,
CBS
reported, after which Mbappé could leave for Real Madrid.
That’s nearly as much as the combined salary caps of the NFL’s Cleveland Browns ($266.5 million), Las Vegas Raiders ($264.5 million), and Buffalo Bills ($257.1 million), according to Spotrac.com. It’s also more than the combined 2023 payrolls of the MLB’s New York Mets ($348.8 million) and New York Yankees ($279.3 million), Spotrac.com said.
Mbappé’s offer is hundreds of millions of dollars more than NBA pro LeBron James’s $479.5 million of career earnings through this year, according to Spotrac.
Qatar-owned Paris Saint-Germain, Mbappé’s current team, confirmed the offer and gave Al Hilal permission to negotiate directly with Mbappé, who decided not to take a 12-month extension on his contract with PSG after it expires next summer.
PSG cut Mbappé out of a promotional tour of Japan this summer. On Tuesday he was training with other PSG players who also didn’t go on the tour, ESPN reported.
Mbappé accepting Al Hilal’s offer would boost interest in the state-backed Saudi Pro League, as well as bring in potential broadcast, sponsorship, and tourism dollars. Saudi Arabia has been investing in pro sports, which it sees as a way to diversify away from its oil-based economy. Its LIV Golf league has shaken the foundation of that sport and is currently looking to combine with the PGA Tour.
Critics of Saudi Arabia’s moves in pro sports have said it’s an attempt to draw attention away from criticism over its human rights record.
The Saudi team’s astronomical bid for Mbappé caught the eye of NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo, who jokingly tweeted: “Al Hilal you can take me. I look like Kylian Mbappe” with laughing-crying emojis.
Mbappé shared Antetokounmpo’s tweet, and added 13 laughing-crying emojis of his own.
Al Hilal also wanted to sign Messi, who after winning last year’s World Cup, decided instead to join Major League Soccer’s Inter Miami, which is partially owned by soccer great David Beckham.
If Mbappé joins Al Hilal, he would be joining other celebrities flocking to play sports in the kingdom. Cristiano Ronaldo is earning an estimated $213 million this year from Al Nassr, while Karim Benzema is collecting $214 million a year on his two-year contract with Al-Ittihad.
Write to Janet H. Cho at [email protected]
Read the full article here
