Unless you have been living under a rock, or inside of a submarine or something, you are well aware Lionel Messi chose Inter Miami as his next club. The signing sent shockwaves through the sporting world (and beyond that) as the likes of Barcelona, other prestigious clubs in Europe and of course Saudi Arabia were all in a frenzy to sign the Argentinian world champion. Messi chose Major League Soccer as his next destination. Yes, Messi is at the tail-end of his career and would never make this move if he still felt he needed to prove anything in Europe, but Messi is still a world-class player with finesse, tactical ability and leadership qualities strong enough that he would walk onto the starting-eleven of any team in the world.

Messi did not make his choice primarily because of money, either. If that was the case, he would have gone to Saudi Arabia where he was reportedly being offered a two-year contract totalling over $1 billion. Messi chose to come to North America primarily as a lifestyle choice. That does not mean he has taken a pay-cut, however. Below are some of the staggering numbers behind Messi to Miami, both financially and what his arrival has done for the MLS in terms of popularity.

Messi’s deal makes him the world’s second highest-paid athlete worth up to $150 million over two-and-a-half-years. This deal also includes revenue-sharing agreements with Apple, Adidas and sports retail company Fanatics.

The impact of Messi’s arrival was felt instantly, as ticket prices for Inter Miami matches skyrocketed. The cheapest ticket for Miami’s September match against defending MLS champions Los Angeles FC rose from $81 to $599. Single resale tickets for Messi’s debut match start at around $1,000 on sites such as Ticketmaster and StubHub.

Inter Miami, currently bottom of the Eastern Conference table, are seven points off the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs pace halfway through their 2023 campaign.

Messi won the World Cup with Argentina in December and would bring an astonishing 43 trophies for club and country with him, as well as over 800 goals scored.