Saudi Arabia's PIF plan long-shot Lionel Messi bid for Pro League if Inter Miami extension falls through

It is nearly two years since Inter Miami won one of the most hotly contested transfer battles of recent years, snaring Lionel Messi at a time when Saudi Arabia thought they had secured the greatest footballer of his generation. In 2025 the tension is nothing like it was last time around.

The widespread expectation, not only in MLS circles but Saudi Pro League ones too, is that Messi will re-up in Miami. The "60 to 90 day" window that owner Jorge Mas set for determining the future of his star player may have now passed, but a new contract is said to be close. Whether Messi ends his glittering career on South Beach is not yet clear, but it seems likely that he will commit to at least another year.

Until such time as the ink is drying on fresh terms, however, Saudi Arabia will bid to bring the game's brightest star to the Pro League. According to CBS Sports sources, longstanding plans to take another swing at Messi accelerated last month. Those are being led by sovereign wealth fund PIF, who would be ready to offer the richest contract in sports if it could convince the Argentine to leave America for the Middle East.

Messi would also be afforded his pick of clubs. Asian champions Al-Ahli have been most consistently linked with the services of the 38-year-old, but CBS Sports has been told that Messi would be afforded his pick of the quartet of clubs owned by PIF -- Al-Ahli, Al-Ittihad, Al-Hilal and Al-Nassr -- were formal talks to take place over a move to the Pro League. Neom SC, the football club of planned city Neom that is itself funded by PIF, would also be available for consideration.

If Messi wants to play with N'Golo Kante and Karim Benzema at the champions then he will get Al-Ittihad. Should he look for a Saudi move then Al-Nassr would doubtless pitch him not merely on resuming his great rivalry with Cristiano Ronaldo but flipping it on its head, the two biggest sportsmen of their age playing out their final days on the same time. There are others within PIF who would relish the chance to see Messi in an Al-Hilal shirt, the Riyadh derby almost a Classico for the kingdom.

There is, however, understood to be greater caution in planning for a possible Messi arrival than the summer of 2023. On that occasion PIF were sufficiently convinced they had got their man that on the afternoon news broke of a deal with Inter Miami private jets were waiting to whisk both Messi and his father to Riyadh, where they would sign with Al-Hilal. Now Saudi sources expect Messi to extend. Much of the ground work being laid in recent weeks could be viewed as simply preparing for the outside possibility that Miami might not be able to secure an extension. Even if that extension were to come, the interest would remain from Saudi Arabia. It will effectively be there until he retires.

Should there come a time to leave Florida, PIF know that Messi has looked favorably on them in the past. Speaking to Time Magazine in March, he said: "I was thinking a lot about going to the Saudi league. I know the country and they have created a very powerful competition that can become an important league in the near future.

"As the country's tourism ambassador, it was a destination that attracted me, especially because I've enjoyed everything I have visited, because of how football is growing in the country and because of the effort they are putting into creating a top competition. It was Saudi Arabia or MLS, and both options seemed very interesting to me."

For the time being it seems likely that Messi will once more opt for MLS. Saudi Arabia, however, are waiting, just in case.