Leo Messi, world champion with Argentina in the last World Cup who changed PSG for Inter Miami in the summer, has been named Athlete of the World in 2023.
After winning the award, the Argentine spoke to the magazine and commented that his priority in the summer was to return to Barcelona: "My first option was to return to Barcelona, but it was not possible. I tried to return and it did not happen," explains the Argentine. . "It is also true that afterwards I was thinking a lot about going to the Saudi league, where I know the country and they have created a very powerful competition that can become an important league in the near future."
It should be remembered that Messi is a tourist ambassador for Arabia, so playing there was not crazy: "As a tourist ambassador for the country, it was a destination that attracted me, especially because I liked everything I have visited, because of how it is growing. football in the country and for the effort they are making to create a top-level competition.
When the Barça option was ruled out, the Argentine star had to decide between the American league or the Saudi league: "it was Saudi Arabia or the MLS, and both options seemed very interesting to me." In the end he decided on the MLS.
Messi marked his arrival in the United States by scoring 10 goals in seven League Cup games, leading Inter Miami to win the championship. An injury limited his MLS performances in September, playing only 6 of 13 possible games.
At the age of 36 and after two decades of career, Messi changed the soccer landscape in the United States. Attendance at games, the cost of tickets, product sales and viewership skyrocketed with the arrival of the star.
David Beckham, one of the owners of Inter Miami, was a key piece for the Argentine to sign for the club in the capital of Florida. The former Manchester United player highlights that "the one that really worried me was Barcelona," says Beckham. "He never got to say goodbye to the fans, nor to say goodbye to the club."
Beckham and Jorge Mas, the club's managing owner, ended up convincing him that his family would enjoy South Florida. "I explained to him that, as a family, the six years we spent in Los Angeles were the best we ever had," Beckham says. "People welcomed us with open arms, not just in Los Angeles, but all over the United States."
"From day one, Leo arrives early and leaves later than any other player," Beckham says. "He is the most professional player on our squad," says Beckham, highlighting the Argentine's involvement.
"With the most revered and influential athlete on the planet playing in Miami for at least the next two years, still performing at the highest level - he won another Ballon d'Or as the world's best player of the year, his eighth, at the end of October -, United "United States is now a football nation. A football nation," concludes the renowned magazine.
