{"id":40800,"date":"2023-07-26T14:27:13","date_gmt":"2023-07-26T18:27:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ifintechworld.com\/investing\/mbappe-offer-would-eclipse-several-u-s-pro-team-salaries\/"},"modified":"2023-07-26T14:27:15","modified_gmt":"2023-07-26T18:27:15","slug":"mbappe-offer-would-eclipse-several-u-s-pro-team-salaries","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ifintechworld.com\/?p=40800","title":{"rendered":"Mbapp\u00e9 Offer Would Eclipse Several U.S. Pro Team Salaries"},"content":{"rendered":"
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French soccer phenom Kylian Mbapp\u00e9 is being wooed by Saudi Arabia\u2019s pro soccer team Al Hilal, which has offered a deal so big it would eclipse the combined salaries of several American pro sports teams.<\/p>\n

Al Hilal, which missed out on netting Argentine soccer star Lionel Messi, bid a record $322 million for Mbapp\u00e9, according to multiple reports. <\/p>\n

\n

The Saudi team is proposing a massive pay deal of $776 million for one year,
\n CBS
\n reported, after which Mbapp\u00e9 could leave for Real Madrid.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s nearly as much as the combined salary caps of the NFL\u2019s Cleveland Browns ($266.5 million), Las Vegas Raiders ($264.5 million), and Buffalo Bills ($257.1 million), according to Spotrac.com. It\u2019s also more than the combined 2023 payrolls of the MLB\u2019s New York Mets ($348.8 million) and New York Yankees ($279.3 million), Spotrac.com said.<\/p>\n

Mbapp\u00e9\u2019s offer is hundreds of millions of dollars more than NBA pro LeBron James\u2019s $479.5 million of career earnings through this year, according to Spotrac.<\/p>\n

Qatar-owned Paris Saint-Germain, Mbapp\u00e9\u2019s current team, confirmed the offer and gave Al Hilal permission to negotiate directly with Mbapp\u00e9, who decided not to take a 12-month extension on his contract with PSG after it expires next summer.\u00a0<\/p>\n

PSG cut Mbapp\u00e9 out of a promotional tour of Japan this summer. On Tuesday he was training with other PSG players who also didn\u2019t go on the tour, ESPN reported.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mbapp\u00e9 accepting Al Hilal\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n

Critics of Saudi Arabia\u2019s moves in pro sports have said it\u2019s an attempt to draw attention away from criticism over its human rights record. <\/p>\n

The Saudi team\u2019s astronomical bid for Mbapp\u00e9 caught the eye of NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo, who jokingly tweeted<\/a>: \u201cAl Hilal you can take me. I look like Kylian Mbappe\u201d with laughing-crying emojis.<\/p>\n

Mbapp\u00e9 shared<\/a> Antetokounmpo\u2019s tweet, and added 13 laughing-crying emojis of his own.<\/p>\n

Al Hilal also wanted to sign Messi, who after winning last year\u2019s World Cup, decided instead to join Major League Soccer\u2019s Inter Miami, which is partially owned by soccer great David Beckham.<\/p>\n

If Mbapp\u00e9 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 \u200b\u200bAl-Ittihad.<\/p>\n

Write to Janet H. Cho at janet.cho@dowjones.com\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n