Why Lionel Messi is not returning to Barcelona

Robin Bairner

• 7 Jun 2023 21:43 BST
• 4 min read

Lionel Messi has confirmed that he will sign for MLS side Inter Miami, ending months of speculation over his future.

It was expected that Messi would sign for Saudi Pro League team Al-Hilal, who offered him a contract worth €1 billion, only for the tide to turn at the beginning of the week.

Reports started to break that Messi was close to agreeing a return to Barcelona, but it was ultimately David Beckham’s MLS franchise Inter Miami that won the race to sign the 35-year-old seven-time Ballon d’Or winner in what is the biggest coup in North American football history.

MORE: How Inter Miami will line up with Messi

He will move to North America as a free agent when his contract with PSG expires after 30 June.

Messi has told Mundo Deportivo that he wanted to move to Barcelona but has explained there were multiple reasons why the deal could not be done.

MORE: ‘Ronaldo lightyears behind Messi’ – Cristiano's Saudi Pro League contribution slammed

Messi reveals why Barcelona return failed

It was Barcelona’s financial situation that blocked Messi’s return. LaLiga had given the Catalan side the green light to complete the deal, but first they needed to raise funds in order to register the Argentine.

This was a process that was likely to be protracted and Messi has admitted that he was eager for his future to be resolved.

“I heard that LaLiga had accepted everything and everything was fine for me to return, but there were still many other things that needed to be done,” he explained. “I heard that they had to sell players or lower players’ salaries and the truth is that I didn’t want to go through all that.

“The time I had to leave, LaLiga had also accepted that they could sign me up and in the end it couldn’t be done. I was afraid the same thing would happen again.

“Although I would have loved it, I couldn’t.”

Why could Barcelona not afford Messi?

Although Messi was a free agent and, therefore, comes with no transfer fee, there would still be costs associated with his move. Barca could not have accommodated these.

Their financial position is such that LaLiga wants them to cut the costs of their squad. This means raising money by selling players and reducing wages. Clearly, signing a superstar like Messi runs counter to this.

Furthermore, the cuts they needed to make to sign a player like Messi were huge. Barca’s financial position is so bad that LaLiga will only allow them to spend a fraction of the money they raise from transfers or save via wage reductions. Currently, Barcelona have to recoup €3 for every €1 spent on players’ salaries, but they had hoped to have this reduced to €1 recouped for every €1 saved. This was not possible.

Even if Messi had agreed to join Barcelona completely free of charge, without wages or a signing on fee, the Camp Nou side would have been deemed guilty of financial manipulation.

Will Messi return to Barcelona in the future?

Messi is unlikely to play for Barcelona again in a competitive match but he has hinted that he could return.

“Obviously I would like to be close to the club,” he said when asked if he could return in some capacity. “I’m going to live in Barcelona. It’s one of the things that we have very clear with my wife and my children.

“Hopefully, I don't know when but hopefully one day I can contribute something to the club and help because it is a club that I love, as I always said. I appreciate the love I had from people during my career and I would like to be here again, yes.”