Over a career that has spanned close to two decades, Leo Messi has played most of his soccer in the red and blue of Barcelona, with a shorter stint in the slightly different red and blue of PSG. This has generally meant that he hasn’t needed to accumulate a diverse real estate portfolio although, as an exceptionally rich person, he has built one up anyway. His latest move has, however, meant another addition to that collection of property, as he has sought out a place to call home while he plays for Inter Miami.
Although he’s pulling down big money, Leo’s current salary is relatively modest when compared to Cristiano Ronaldo’s, and so it might be expected that his present accommodation would be put in the shade by his long-time rival. Is that actually the case, though? Well, we’ll need to read on to see exactly what eight Ballons d’Or can buy a player, but – spoiler alert – it does add up to a lot of luxury.
Unlike the latest Casa Ronaldo in Riyadh, there isn’t a great deal of secrecy surrounding the home that Messi will be living in for the bulk of his time in Miami. We know, for example, that the value of the mansion is somewhere around $11million. Some more specific estimates place the cost at $10.8million, and indicate that it has gone up 20% in price since July 2022, when it was previously bought (by whom, we don’t know) for $9million. That extra chunk of cash may have a little to do with the fact that it was being sold to one of the world’s most famous sportsmen, of course, but he can probably afford it given that the entire price represents about ten weeks’ salary.
There are a few more details of which we can be relatively confident. The home covers 10,500 square feet, has eight bedrooms, a garage with space for three cars, and a swimming pool. When you lay it out like that, it sounds impressive but weirdly, it’s not exactly otherworldly for a professional sports player. For reference, a posting on a realty website indicates that there is a 7-bed, 11-bath home covering close to 20,000 sq ft on sale for nearly $60million right now. Maybe it’s not as convenient as the new pad, which is 15 minutes’ drive from Inter Miami’s DRV PNK Stadium.
It’s not his only property in Miami
Here’s an interesting wrinkle to the story: the purchase of Messi’s new Fort Lauderdale home was not the first time he’s closed on a real estate deal in the area. In fact, it’s not the second or third. Messi purchased an condo in Sunny Isles Beach as long ago as 2019, while he was still playing at Barcelona. Indeed, at that time, Inter Miami as a club only existed on paper. So it would be fanciful to imagine that the property was bought with a view to giving him a place to stay when he joined the club; it’s just not uncommon for very rich people to buy homes in Florida.
It’s understood that Leo also bought a couple of apartments just prior to, or just after, he signed for Inter, giving his closer extended family somewhere to stay when they accompanied him to his new club, or when they came to visit. That’s probably how they will remain for now, but as with any property holding, he always has the option to sell them on or lease them as very expensive AirBnBs. Either way, it’s interesting to note that he’s invested extensively in the area, and may indicate that he’d be happy to stay at the club until at least the end of his current contract.
Where else does he own property?
Compared to most soccer stars with his profile, Messi’s career has been relatively settled, so he’s not going to have accumulated homes in places as far-flung as some others. He owns a place in Rosario, where he was born and grew up before moving in his early teens to Barcelona. Naturally, he owns at least one Catalan home – again, in close proximity to the stadium he graced for so many years. It is still owned by the player, who is understood to want to play at least once more for Barcelona, and who may settle in the $5.5million luxury mansion when he hangs up his cleats.
Messi does not own a property in Paris, although at least until recently he was still renting a palatial apartment in the city’s Neuilly suburb. The rental cost is understood to be somewhere in the region of $20,000 a month, and speculation is that it is among the most luxurious homes anywhere in France. In addition to these properties, Leo does own some homes in areas he’s never graced as a player – a $9.5million house in Ibiza, and no fewer than six properties spread across Italy.
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