Newcastle United owners miss out on transfer target as Lionel Messi confirms next club

A Saudi Arabian club taken over by Newcastle United's majority owners has missed out on Lionel Messi.

Al Hilal, now 75%-owned by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), had wanted to sign the Argentina international.

However, the World Cup-winning forward has opted to join Major League Soccer (MLS) club Inter Miami.

“I made the decision that I'm going to go to Miami,” Messi told Mundo Deportivo and Sport. “I still haven’t closed it 100%. I’m missing some things, but we decided to continue on the path.”

The Miami MLS franchise is co-owned by former England captain David Beckham.

Messi – who had also been waiting on a "formal" offer from Barcelona, his former club – had been expected to follow Cristiano Ronaldo (Al Nassr) and Karim Benzema (Al Ittihad) to the Saudi Pro League.

Al Hilal had made the 35-year-old, out of contract at Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain this summer, a huge financial offer.

“If it had been a matter of money, I would have gone to Saudi Arabia – or elsewhere," said Messi. "It seemed like a lot of money to me, and the truth is that my decision was for the other side, and not for money.”

Messi left Barcelona two years ago because of financial problems at the Nou Camp. He scored 672 goals, and won 10 La Liga titles, four Champions Leagues and seven Spanish Cups, with the club.

PIF's latest football move

Newcastle are 80%-owned by PIF following a takeover in late 2021.

The sovereign wealth fund, headed up by United chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan, has also taken stakes in Al Ahli, Al Nassr and Al Ittihad, and the league is targeting a number of big-name players.

A PIF statement read: "As part of today's announcement of the Sport Clubs Investment and Privatisation Project, four Saudi clubs – Al Ittihad, Al Ahli, Al Nassr and Al Hilal – have been transformed into companies, each of which is owned by PIF and non-profit foundations for each club.

"PIF's ownership in the clubs' companies represent 75% in each club, while their respective non-profit foundations hold 25% ownership of each club.

"The transfer of the four clubs will unleash various commercial opportunities, including investment, partnership and sponsorships across numerous sports."

United beat Al Hilal 5-0 in a friendly in Riyadh last December.