Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo remain the biggest show in any given town, with their highly decorated travelling circuses currently crisscrossing the United States and Saudi Arabia. Could they join forces at some stage and put on the ultimate performance?
Argentine icon Messi has been chasing the American dream since 2023, with Manchester United legend Sir David Beckham taking him to South Florida. The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner has, unsurprisingly, delivered rich returns on and off the field.
Messi and Ronaldo guarantee goals and trophies
Over the course of a quite remarkable career, Messi has been the most glittering of rewards at the end of a sporting rainbow. The same can be said for Ronaldo, with another domestic title in the Middle East being added to his distinguished roll of honour. CR7 has now conquered English, Spanish, Italian and Saudi football.
The two are certainly some of the most well-known footballers in the scene, helped by their appearances in advertising and brand appearances, with Ronaldo's CR7 brand in particular being used across a range of products. Many have theorised that CR7 would appear as a licenced slot game, as sports stars like AP McCoy have done in the Sporting Legends series, a slot that sits alongside other popular slots like the 12 Pots of Gold Drums Frenzy real money slot. However, neither Ronaldo nor Messi has taken this route yet.
Messi and Ronaldo still have targets to chase down
With that in mind, would a fresh start and new challenge appeal to the most ambitious and driven of characters? If an exit door swings open in Riyadh, then clubs around the world will be queuing up to secure the most sought-after of signatures.
Another pot of gold would come up for grabs, with the only question being where said prize will be positioned. There is every reason to believe that Beckham and Co could ensure that it arrives in the Sunshine State.
While no end date has been put in place by Ronaldo, despite retirement talk seemingly never far away, he is - at this stage of his career - a man that needs intriguing targets to keep him interested.
Exploits of the record-breaking variety will forever pique the Portuguese’s interest, as he looks to chase down 1,000 career goals. It may be that he fancies helping Messi edge ever closer towards hitting the same milestone.
Could Messi and Ronaldo join forces in MLS?
Rene Meulensteen, who once worked with Ronaldo at Manchester United, has said that CR7 “would love to” link up with Messi in Miami. They have never previously graced the same team, with an obvious air of intrigue hanging over both as a result.
Not everybody, though, is convinced that a GOAT union should take place. Another former colleague of Ronaldo at Old Trafford, American-born ex-Italy international striker Giuseppe Rossi, claims it would be “kind of weird” to see two icons stepping out of a shared dressing room.
Such a scenario cannot be completely ruled out, with Ronaldo only under contract at Al-Nassr through to the summer of 2027. Messi’s deal in the U.S. will take in the 2028 MLS season.
If two superheroes, with their respective standings among the immortals already safely secured, decide that their paths should cross at club level - rather than in international action - then a global audience of several billion will be watching eagerly to see how that particular experiment plays out.