When Lionel Messi was a teenager, he received an offer that would change his life to join Barcelona’s youth teams. Drafted informally on a napkin, the contract included an unconventional clause: the commitment to pay for the young player’s growth hormone treatment.
Newell’s Old Boys, the Argentine club where he played, had given up on the expense as they considered it too risky a bet on an unproven athlete. For Barcelona, however, it may have been one of the wisest investments in its history: the treatment paid off and Messi’s career took off, leading both the player and the Spanish club to international stardom.
Off the field, he has also just reached another important milestone: he has become one of the rare billionaire athletes in the world.
Messi, 38, has accumulated more than US$700 million (R$3.5 billion) in salaries and bonuses since 2007, according to a Bloomberg analysis. Considering taxes, market performance and income from investments and sponsorships, his net worth surpassed the US$1 billion mark (R$5 billion), according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
That puts him alongside longtime rival Cristiano Ronaldo — the Portuguese striker who became football’s first billionaire after signing with Saudi Pro League side Al-Nassr FC in 2023 — among the world’s richest athletes.
While Ronaldo’s flamboyant personality has long attracted advertisers in industries ranging from petroleum products to sporting goods, Messi’s marketing machine in the early years of his career sometimes struggled to keep up with the level of his talent on the pitch. More recently, however —under the management of his father, Jorge— his business trajectory has prospered.
A millionaire salary paid by his current club, Inter Miami, alleged TV revenue sharing agreements, real estate investments and even a stake in an Argentine restaurant chain helped place him in the select group of billionaires.
This could easily have happened before. Many observers of Messi’s career were surprised when the player, fresh from winning the World Cup with Argentina in 2022, turned down a gigantic contract worth US$400 million (R$2 billion) per year to play in the Saudi Pro League. Instead, he chose to transfer to Inter Miami, while Ronaldo signed his own Saudi contract in 2023, worth more than US$200 million (R$1 billion) annually.
“Money was never a problem for me, nor an obstacle in anything,” Messi told Mundo Deportivo in an interview that year. “If it was about money, I would have gone to Saudi Arabia or somewhere else.”
Historically, athletes who accumulated assets of US$1 billion or more reached this level mainly thanks to investments. Roger Federer earned more than US$130 million (R$650 million) in prizes throughout his career, but a deal to acquire a 3% stake in Swiss tennis manufacturer On in 2019 became the main source of his fortune after the company’s shares soared.
Michael Jordan, despite being one of the highest-paid players in the NBA in his time, received less than US$100 million (R$500 million) in salary throughout his career. A stake in the Charlotte Hornets and endorsement deals accounted for most of his wealth. In recent years, however, the sharp increase in the salaries of top athletes — especially in football — has allowed the sport’s biggest stars to accumulate US$1 billion or more in sports compensation alone.
The agreement with Inter Miami also brought innovative benefits for Messi, including an unusual equity option that gives him the right to buy a stake in the club, which already has former English player David Beckham as a shareholder.
Although it is unclear what stake — if any — Messi has acquired in his team in the United States since arriving at the club, Inter Miami has seen strong appreciation. The team’s value rose more than 20% in the 12 months to February, to around US$1.45 billion (R$7.3 billion), according to Sportico. Today, it is the most valuable football club in the United States, occupying 16th place in the global rankings, ahead of teams like Newcastle United.
Apple offer
Messi’s move to the United States also opened up new innovative forms of remuneration. During initial contract negotiations, the United States Soccer League and Apple discussed a revenue-sharing agreement that would allow the player to receive a portion of sales from new subscriptions to the MLS Season Pass, Apple TV+’s streaming package, The Athletic reported.
Jorge Mas, owner of Inter Miami, stated that subscription to the streaming service doubled in the months following the player’s arrival. In an interview given earlier this year, Mas indicated that Messi’s total annual remuneration at the club varies between US$70 million (R$350 million) and US$80 million (R$400 million), considering shareholding rights and salaries as an athlete.
Bloomberg was unable to independently verify the financial details of Messi’s deal with Apple. Attempts to contact the player’s family, through his press office, were unanswered.
From a strictly sporting point of view, the transfer to Inter Miami was seen by fans as a step backwards, following a path already taken by veteran stars towards less traditional football markets, but willing to pay dearly for prestigious names. Before the move, Messi — considered by many to be the greatest player of all time — spent two seasons at French football powerhouse Paris Saint-Germain. Before that, he led Barcelona to several Spanish and European victories. He has also won more Ballon d’Ors than any other athlete.
Even after becoming a star for the Catalan club in the 2000s, it took some time before his earnings really took off: when he signed a contract renewal in 2009, the Spanish press reported that he was earning around US$12 million (R$60 million) per year. With salary inflation in football, last season ten players in Barcelona’s squad received more than that annually, according to data from analysis company Capology.
Messi spent more than half his life in Spain and still maintains strong links with Barcelona, but rarely gives interviews to press outlets outside Argentina. Revered in his home country, especially after the 2022 World Cup title, he faced difficulties in the first years of his career, partly due to his shyness and also because many fans made harsh comparisons with Diego Maradona.
It’s something he still deals with today. In an interview with an Argentine streaming platform earlier this year, he described himself using a local expression for someone who is socially awkward. He added that he gets uncomfortable when his daily plans change and that one of his favorite pastimes is watching television alone at home.
