One of the most intriguing comparison in recent years – who is better, Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo? Or through them, which club is more successful – Barcelona or Real Madrid? Or if you want more, which national team has a more iconic leader – Argentina or Portugal? All questions without one specific answer.
But in this new football era, we decided to go one step further and ask the question, which league will profit more? MLS from Messi’s arrival or Saudi Pro League from Ronaldo’s?
Both leagues decided to invest big and grab a bigger piece of ‘’audience and market football cake’’. Logical thing to do from their perspective because both countries have World Cups coming their way. The United States (together with Canada and Mexico) will host World Cup 2026 and Saudi Arabia will host World Cup 2034. There is no better way to make the audience look in their direction, than to attract big football superstars to play in their leagues.
Cristiano Ronaldo came to Al-Nassr at the beginning of 2023 as the first big star to make the move of signing for one Saudi club. He was soon followed by many other stars like Karim Benzema, Neymar, Roberto Firmino, N’Golo Kanté, Ivan Rakitić etc.
Of course, money is not a problem in Saudi Arabia so paying all those stars much more than they had in Europe was a simple task. Attracting the biggest names in football was (and still is) a main Saudi initiative.
But what did they get in terms of football?
If we look at the last three Saudi Pro League seasons, trends are clear. In 2021/2022, as the last whole season without Ronaldo, there were 637 total goals scored (or 2,61 goals per game). 3,76 big chances created per game and 625,10 accurate passes per game.
In next season Ronaldo came halfway through, and their season finished with 648 total goals scored (2,66 per game), 3,90 big chances created per game and 682,10 accurate passes per game. So, everything was on the rise.
But the real explosion happened last season, which was the first whole season for Ronaldo. A total of 905 goals were scored (2,97 per game), 4,55 big chances created per game and 718,34 accurate passes per game.
It is safe to say that Ronaldo made the whole league better. Of course, not just him, those numbers were a collective success from all the superstars in the league, but Ronaldo was the one who opened the door for some of the best footballers in the world to come to the Saudi Pro League.
Was Messi just sitting by and regretting not coming to Saudi Arabia? Not really, he had his own mission in the USA.
He came to Inter Miami in July 2023 in a big deal with owner of the club, David Beckham. Not counting Becks himself when he moved to MLS in 2007, Messi is the biggest star to this day that decided to come to play for one MLS club.
Financial construction of the league itself is much more regulated than the Saudi one, so there wasn’t an option for many other expensive stars following his way, but Inter Miami managed to build an interesting team, fitting to Leo’s desires and style of play. Ex Barcelona players, Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba, Luis Suárez all came after Messi and Argentinian Gerardo Martino was appointed as manager. Friendly environment for MLS’s biggest star.
Football in Miami exploded after that. Ticket and shirt sales were record high, social media channels became most followed, Inter Miami was among most searched topics on Google in 2023.
But again, same question as with Ronaldo – what did they get in terms of football?
Once more, we will look at the last three MLS seasons. 2022 was the last year without Messi. A total of 1.455 goals were scored (2,97 per game). 4,05 big chances created per game and 704,16 accurate passes per game.
Next season, Messi came halfway through and played only six matches for his new club. So not a lot of visible changes for the league as a whole. 1.434 goals scored (2,74 per game), 3,89 big chances created per game and 713,47 accurate passes per game.
And in his first whole season as a Miami resident, numbers are on the rise. The 2024 season started in February, 900 goals are scored so far (3,07 scored per game). 4,78 big chances are created per game and 769,41 passes are accurate per game.
Just like Ronaldo, Messi made the whole league better.
If those two superstars are capable of making the whole league better, just imagine what they can do with their club’s statistical charts.
Again, we will compare last three seasons, and the ‘’Ronaldo/Messi effect’’ is clearly visible:
GOALS SCORED (per game)
Al-Nassr: 1,9 – 2,1 – 2,94
Inter Miami: 1,42 – 1,21 – 2,29
BIG CHANCES CREATED (per game)
Al-Nassr: 2,29 – 2,6 – 4,12
Inter Miami: 1,94 – 1,76 – 2,95
ACCURATE PASSES (per game)
Al-Nassr: 352,1 – 442,5 – 513,38
Inter Miami: 347,75 – 418,71 – 475,43
Ronaldo was the top goal scorer in last Saudi Pro season, with 35 goals scored and 11 assists provided. He finished the season with an average Sofascore rating of 7.83.
Messi (due to rest and muscular issues) played only 12 matches this season but he already has 12 goals and nine assists on his 2024 MLS CV. He currently has an 8.41 average Sofascore rating. He failed to score in only 3 matches he played.
At the end, if you thought that we would declare a winner, sorry to disappoint you. Both leagues and both clubs made a great move when they managed to attract a name like that. And both players returned the favor and made everyone around them better.
So, let’s not declare winners. Let’s just enjoy everything Ronaldo and Messi are providing to the world of football. We should be lucky that we are still witnessing this ‘’rivalry’’ that has been lasting for more than ten years.