Soccer is the ultimate prize in Saudi Arabia’s push in sports. Karim Benzema’s signing offered a glimpse of the price tag. Lionel Messi’s rejection showed its limits.
Category: Messi, Lionel
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How Apple and David Beckham Beat Saudi Arabia in the Race for Messi
A complex arrangement, involving Apple, to bring the soccer star to Miami shows how to trump the free-spending kingdom — and how hard that may be to duplicate.
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Lionel Messi, Soccer’s Most Coveted Free Agent, Picks Inter Miami
Days after he announced he would not return to Paris St.-Germain, Messi, Argentina’s World Cup hero, said his next stop would be Inter Miami of M.L.S.
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Lionel Messi, Soccer’s Most Coveted Free Agent, Picks Miami
Days after he announced he would not return to Paris St.-Germain, Messi, Argentina’s World Cup hero, said his next stop would be Inter Miami of M.L.S.
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Saudi Soccer League Creates Huge Fund to Sign Global Stars
A coordinated effort financed by the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund is offering huge paydays to some of the sport’s biggest stars if they join Saudi Arabia’s best teams.
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PSG or Lens: Who Had the Better Season?
P.S.G. will win another French title this year, and Lens won’t win a thing. But it’s worth asking: Who had the better season?
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Lionel Messi’s Bitter Divorce From P.S.G.
A missed practice, a Saudi vacation and a brief suspension brought a sudden end to a star’s transactional relationship with Paris St.-Germain, and Qatar.
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Playing Lionel Messi and Argentina Will Cost You $5 Million a Game
Five months ago, Argentina won the biggest prize in soccer. Now teams across the world are fighting for the second biggest: the chance to play it.
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Lionel Messi, Barcelona and Limited Options
The chase for a transcendent star in the twilight of his career requires a new term: GOATwashing.
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Argentina’s World Cup Champions Gather for First Time Since Qatar
The New York Times – Sports:Lionel Messi and his Argentina teammates have reunited for the first time. Most are finding a day job feels different after you’ve won the World Cup.
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P.S.G.’s Star System Has Run Its Course
The New York Times – Sports:Even with Messi, Mbappé and Neymar, the French champion is a Champions League also-ran once again. Is buying local the way forward?
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Liverpool, Napoli and the Problem With Systems
The New York Times – Sports:As system clubs start to falter, the future seems to belong to the teams and coaches who are willing to be a little more flexible.