After seven Ballon d’Or triumphs, countless trophies in Europe and a World Cup medal just for good measure, the legendary Lionel Messi has left football’s main continent and joined Inter Miami in MLS.
We take a look at five other groundbreaking transfers that shook North America’s top division.
Thierry Henry
Arguably the best Premier League player of all time, Thierry Henry was one of the first major signings for an Eastern Conference team from Europe when he signed for New York Red Bulls from Barcelona.
The Frenchman is Arsenal’s all-time top scorer and remains the only player in Premier League history to score 20+ goals and register 20+ assists in a single Premier League season.
Henry joined the Red Bulls from Barcelona in 2010 and he would score 52 goals in 135 appearances.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Despite signing many years after the groundbreaking transfers such as Henry, what made Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s move so monumental was how he was clearly still good enough to play in the top leagues around Europe after scoring 16 Premier League goals in the season prior with Manchester United.
The Swedish legend would go on to score 53 goals in 58 games for LA Galaxy, and this remains his best goals to game ratio in his illustrious career that spanned more than 20 years at the top level.
Carlos Valderrama
The first major foreign import into MLS was Carlos Valderrama.
When he swapped a career in Europe and South America for Tampa Bay Mutiny in MLS in 1996. Prior to this, the league had only witnessed a few non-Americans, but none reached the stature of Valderrama.
He would spend six seasons in MLS and the Colombian will no doubt be credited as one of the pioneers of MLS.
Kaka
Just seven years on from winning the prestigious Ballon d'Or, the legendary figure of Kaka would move to MLS to play with Orlando City in the club's first-ever MLS season.
Being Orlando’s first major signing in their MLS era and after such an incredible career in Europe, Kaka broke down many barriers by joining the league when he was only 32.
Kaka also became the first and only Ballon d’Or winner to play in MLS, but this will change when Messi joins Inter Miami.
David Beckham
The man who changed it all.
If it wasn’t for David Beckham’s transfer in 2007 from Real Madrid to LA Galaxy, there’s no doubting that all the other major signings since him may not have happened.
Beckham was one of the most famous faces on earth at the time and still regarded as a top talent in Europe and the captain of England too. Nevertheless, he stunned the sport when he left behind Europe to become the biggest signing in MLS history.
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