For MLS fans, picturing Neymar showing off his skills on American soil feels like a dream that’s finally getting some traction. After all, the star bought a house in Miami, and his move to Al-Hilal, a Saudi soccer club, doesn’t exactly scream “forever.” But then, in steps Tata Martino, Inter Miami’s coach, laying down the law with a splash of cold, hard reality. With that classic Argentine frankness, he made it clear that Neymar’s move to MLS, at least at his current salary, is practically a fantasy.
Martino doesn’t beat around the bush. In a recent interview, he spelled out the main hurdle: MLS’s ironclad financial rules. For a player like Neymar to land at Inter Miami, or any other team in the league, it’s all about serious financial restructuring, almost like starting over. We’re talking about slashing a salary that’s sky-high to something any star of his caliber would barely glance at. It’s not just about wanting it; it’s about sacrifice. Martino even brought up Luis Suárez as an example, who took a big pay cut to play in the U.S. But would Neymar do the same?
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Neymar’s raking in around €80 million a year at Al-Hilal, and that’s way beyond what MLS can cover, not even with its famed “Designated Player Rule.” This rule, rolled out back in 2007, made it possible for David Beckham to play for the LA Galaxy, giving each team the ability to sign up to three players outside the salary cap. The goal is to attract big names to pump up the league without blowing up the teams’ budgets.
Sure, the rule technically allows Neymar to join as one of those three players who dodge the salary cap, but that doesn’t mean MLS would be cool with a player making nearly €80 million a year. The league’s all about balance and sustainability, an almost utopian idea in today’s soccer world. So unless the league itself bends and loosens the rule for a once-in-a-lifetime signing, Neymar would face a choice as big as his talent: settle for less to chase the American dream, or keep playing where the money flows like water.
The reality is MLS sticks to a league model inspired by the North American sports system, where the focus isn’t just on individual performance but on the collective, and most of all, on the money. The salary cap and signing rules aren’t just bureaucratic details. They exist to keep teams competing on a level playing field, creating a fair and exciting league for the fans, without the extravagance we see in Europe or even the Arab world, where money isn’t exactly a problem.
And when it comes to money, MLS’s philosophy couldn’t be more different from markets like Europe or Saudi Arabia, where huge sums change hands for transfers and salaries without much worry about limits. In the U.S., sports operate with a business mindset: keep costs in check, think about sustainability, and make sure the final product is profitable and fair for everyone involved. That means Neymar, if he really wanted to play for Inter Miami, would need to adjust his paycheck expectations.
Meanwhile, Martino drives home the point that MLS isn’t a league that bends easily for superstars. They’ve got rules, and those rules exist for a reason. The Argentine even hints that there’s no use in fueling speculation and rumors, because MLS’s system isn’t flexible enough to make exceptions that could mess with the league’s core values. Sure, the league would gain from having Neymar, but not at the cost of tossing its guidelines aside.
Even if Neymar seriously considered making that sacrifice, would he fit MLS’s style of play? The American league is physical, intense, packed with energy. It’s not exactly what he’s used to in Saudi Arabia, or what he’d expect from European fields where technique outshines physicality. MLS was designed as a league where the spectacle is collective, not individual. Even Beckham, when he accepted the LA Galaxy’s offer, knew he’d need to adapt, not just to the style of play but to Americans’ expectations about the sport. For Neymar, though, things get trickier: he’d have to weigh a massive financial cut against the promise of something that might not even fit into his career goals.
Martino hints at a pretty big takeaway, saying that as long as MLS sticks to its rules, bringing Neymar on board will be nearly impossible. But a superstar like Neymar brings more than just skills to the field; he brings fans, fame, and the visibility that MLS is still chasing. The hitch? For this story to end well, the league would need to make a major shift in its own economic model.