Soccer Superstar Kylian Mbappe Offered the Largest One Year Deal In the World
The world of sports has grown into one of the world’s highest-paid professions with some of the world’s most famous athletes inking contracts worth about a billion dollars. Forbes recently dropped its 2023 list of the world’s richest athletes based on their earnings in 2022 and the numbers are staggering.
Cristiano Ronaldo topped the list with an estimated 136 Million in earnings last year with Lionel Messi just behind him at 130 Million. Lebron James comes in at third with about 120 Million estimated earnings. In terms of the largest annual contracts ever signed, Messi held the record when he signed a $674 Million contract with Barcelona over four years. Well, that record has just could be shattered.
French Soccer superstar Kylian Mbappe was just offered a 1.1 Billion dollar contract. The deal would span over just one year and includes a $332 Million transfer fee for leaving French club Paris Saint-Germain. This would total Mbappe’s salary to an unheard-of $776 million, making him the highest-paid athlete in the world. This contract also breaks the record for the largest contract ever offered to an athlete.
The 24-year-old soccer phenom has been looked at as the next soccer superstar for some time now due to his outstanding play in the European league. Mbappe burst onto the scene cup. He lead France to back-to-back World Cup finals where they defeated Croatia in 2018 in a 4-2 final and lost to Argentian in 2022 in a penalty shootout. Mbappe has scored 12 goals in just 14 World Cup matches. No doubt he is a young superstar and deserves to be paid as such, but who shelling out this kind of money?
Al-Hilal, a Saudi Arabian-owned league, is reportedly making a gigantic offer to persuade the French Phenom to join the league. Mbappe has already come out and stated that he doesn’t want to play for the league and wished to join Real Madrid however, Al-Hilal has planned for this as the one-year contract would allow him to play for the Saudi league before joining Real Madrid next summer when he is allowed to be a free agent.
Mbappe’s current contract in France would have him earn $128 Million next year. This is not uncommon as Saudi Arabian-backed LIV golf has shelled outrageous contracts to PG tour golfers recently. The same league also reportedly offered Messi a Billion dollar contract that he turned down to play for a Miami club in the MLS.
Nothing official has been reported about if Mbappe has declined the offer or not, but agreeing to the deal would make him the highest-paid athlete in the world.