Lionel Messi said on Wednesday that he would sign with Major League Soccer club Inter Miami, bypassing a reunion with Barcelona or a huge agreement to play in Saudi Arabia.
The 35-year-old Argentine forward has spent the last two seasons at Paris Saint-Germain, where he will play his final game on Saturday, after moving from Barcelona in 2021, where he spent most of his career.
MLS and Inter Miami verified the news on social media, while the American league stated that "work remains to be completed to finalize a formal agreement."
"I've decided to go to Miami," Messi told Spanish daily Diario Sport and Mundo Deportivo. "I don't have (the deal) 100% sealed, or maybe there's something else to do, but we decided to continue our path there."
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"After winning the World Cup and not being able to go to Barca, it's time to go to MLS to live football in a different way and enjoy my day-to-day life more."
Messi has won the Ballon d'Or seven times and is likely to win again after leading Argentina to a World Cup triumph in Qatar in December.
The football world was waiting for Messi's decision after PSG stated this week that the playmaker, primarily regarded as the best player in the world, would be leaving the club.
Inter Miami, created in 2018 and co-owned by former England great David Beckham, fired coach Phil Neville last week, leaving the team at the bottom of the Eastern Conference.
According to some rumours, prominent MLS sponsors such as Adidas and Apple TV, who own the league's domestic broadcasting rights, may contribute to his contract.
Messi, turning 36 later this month, will complete his club career away from the glare of top-level European football.
Messi returned from suspension last weekend to play his 75th and final match for PSG, a loss to Clermont, in which he was jeered once more and failed to add to his tally of 32 goals for the club.
