Neymar is consuming his last episodes in Saudi football. In this winter or summer market, but the a lot of money he earns at Al Hilal makes his immediate exit very difficult and, especially, the destinations he would like to go to, such as Santos or Inter Miami. One for his past and another for feeling like he did when he was at his peak with Messi and Luis Suárez. Despite their limited football presence in recent years, the arrival of the Brazilian in either of the two championships would activate them to the maximum, especially commercially, a section in which he continues to be number one. In sports it remains to be seen. Two hundred million euros is an amount far from the reach of the rest of football. Now it seems that he is approaching Santos, but the operation is not easy at all. 98 million euros are to blame. What it cost the Saudi team.
Chicago Fire or Inter Miami are the two North American teams (MLS) seeking the arrival of Neymar. The possible departure of the Saudi gained even more strength after the statements of coach Jorge Jesús this Thursday, making it clear that physically the Brazilian has not been able to continue. the rhythm of the team. Neymar was signed in August 2023 and in October of the same year he suffered a serious knee injury, which sidelined him for more than a year. He even returned to performing at the end of last year, but then suffered a muscle injury, returning to medical treatment.
The MLS dreams of his arrival
Despite not having a good emotional moment and having played little last season, the Brazilian can still recover his football and be a protagonist ahead of the 2026 World Cup, which, by the way, will be played on American soil. “Although Neymar is no longer at the peak of his sporting performance, his possible move to Major League Soccer (MLS), especially if it results in a partnership with Lionel Messi, could increase the popularity of soccer in the United States and strengthen the league. “. presence in the Latin American market,” says Ivan Martinho, professor of sports marketing at ESPM.
The probable arrival of Neymar to the MLS brings inevitable comparisons with what happened with Messi at Inter Miami. The arrival of the Argentine star to the club, in July 2023, promoted Major League Soccer, the main North American soccer league, once and for all. A study carried out by _SponsorUnited_, published at the end of last year, shows that sponsorship income reached $665 million, 13% more than in 2023. Between February and October of this year, 1,800 brands and 2,500 businesses were analyzed, and new associations in the competition were 18%.
Neymar cannot perform at the level we are used to
Jorge Jesús, coach of Al Hilal
The numbers are only behind the NHL, North America’s ice hockey league, with estimated revenues of $750 million this season. If this growth continues, it will be the first time that another competition takes center stage in what is considered one of the main leagues in the United States, along with the National Football League (NFL), Major League Baseball (MLB) and National Basketball. . Association (NBA).
audience cannon
“Neymar is a cannon for the audience, in addition to his technical quality to play since he is still young. Certainly I only see positive points for the league and the clubs, and the athlete has to know how he wants to behave and what he aspires to.” at this stage of your career, because if you are focused and motivated, you still have a lot to contribute to world sport,” says Renê Salviano, CEO of Heatmap and sports marketing specialist, as demonstrated by the fourteen sponsorships that the Brazilian maintains.
With Messi, Apple TV, which exclusively broadcasts MLS matches, gained 110,000 subscribers just the day it announced the broadcasts, and almost 300,000 in a month. The platform paid $250 million a year to show the competition, for a 10-year contract, until 2033. The total value of $2.5 billion, for example, is practically triple what was paid previously, around 100 million dollars.
For Thiago Freitas, COO of Roc Nation Sports in Brazil, although his time in Saudi Arabia is not being positive on the field, due to his injuries, he believes that his talent can turn the situation around. “If he is able to perform, he is capable of being relevant in decisive matches at any level. Furthermore, we have a huge number of football fans in the world, not only in Brazil, which for years had Neymar as an icon, a reference that It is related to fashion and style, through accessories, hairstyles, but also with music, bringing choreographies to the field of play. Neymar can be an athlete as relevant in the United States as Messi is for his team. and it can also be a boost for businesses that explore your image and brand, like what is happening today with Messi,” he says.
72,610 spectators
In October 2024, the MLS broke another record: for the first time, more than 11 million spectators were present at regular season games, surpassing the year 2023, with 10.9 million. The numbers have directly to do with the presence of Messi, who contributed an average of 23,240 League games last season. The record was recorded at an Inter Miami game, when 72,610 paying fans attended Arrowhead Stadium, home of the Kansas City Chiefs soccer team, to watch the game against Sporting Kansas City.
“As happened with Messi, Neymar’s possible move to MLS would provide great visibility to soccer in the United States, in addition to being responsible for increasing the income of the League and the city,” adds Fábio Wolff, managing partner of Wolff Sports and sports specialist.
Club World Cup
Neymar’s trip to the United States also has other objectives. In the coming years, starting in 2025, the United States will host some of the main competitions on the planet. In the middle of the year the first Club World Cup will be held (Al Hilal is classified and promises to sign a lot for the tournament), and in 2026, the World Cup, with some North American states as the main venues. In 2028 it will be the turn of the Los Angeles Olympic Games.
“MLS is one of the leagues most concerned about increasing its current global visibility and, combined with this, sees room for growth of interest among its own local audience. The connection occurs at a strategic time, with the country becoming closer to host the biggest competitions A global icon on and off the field, Neymar would not only attract new fans and sponsors, but also drive commercial partnerships, expand the league’s digital engagement and strengthen its presence in pop culture, through his relationship with fashion, music and entertainment. Its presence in the MLS would be a catalyst to consolidate soccer as a prominent sport in the country, generating long-term cultural, economic and sporting impacts,” analyzes Wagner Leitzke, digital marketing leader of the company End to. End.
Neymar footballer
The Brazilian wants to be in the 2026 World Cup in the United States despite the fact that he has not played a game with his national team since October 2023, with an injury involved, of course. With Al Hilal he has not gone more than seven games, which represents a 17-month hiatus in which he has practically been away from competitive tension, which has led him to not be registered to play with the Saudi team. The first challenge is to be a footballer again, something complicated, and then think about challenges.
“He chose not to be a high-level player
Sports TV
“He chose not to be a high-level player,” they stated emphatically on the SporTV program ‘Seleçao’, in reference to the choices that Neymar has had in recent years. “If we talk about technical quality, ‘Ney’ could play for any team in the world. In the World Cup he was one of the best in the world, against Croatia he scored an iconic goal, but things have changed very quickly: his serious injury, his age …”