Al-Hilal Bid €300 Million in Attempt to Sway Mbappé from Real Madrid Dream
Mbappé joined PSG from Monaco in 2018 for £166m. Today, Saudi Arabian powerhouse Al-Hilal have launched an unprecedented €300 million (£259 million) bid to prise wantaway PSG superstar Kylian Mbappé away from his seemingly inevitable move to Real Madrid.
The jaw-dropping offer would completely shatter the existing transfer fee record of €222 million that PSG paid Barcelona for Neymar in 2017. Reports indicate Al-Hilal are prepared to pay Mbappé an almost beyond comprehension €200 million salary for just one season—a sum that would make him easily the highest paid player in world football and possibly in all of sport.
The move comes after PSG left Mbappé out of their pre-season tour squad, in an apparent attempt to either force him to sign a contract extension or sell the French phenom whilst they can still command a substantial fee for his services. However, PSG remain entirely convinced Mbappé has already agreed personal terms to join dream club Real Madrid as a free agent next summer when his contract at the Parc des Princes expires.
The news first broke from transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano: "Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia) have submitted formal bid to Paris Saint-Germain in order to open talks for Kylian Mbappé", worth a reported €300 million.
PSG remain convinced that Mbappé "already agreed terms with Real Madrid with contract ready", suggesting Al-Hilal's bid will not sway Mbappé from his dream move to the Spanish capital. However, further developments throughout the week cannot be ruled out.
Mbappé has long been Real Madrid's number one transfer priority and looked set to join them last summer before having a last-minute change of heart and extending his PSG contract. Al-Hilal's record-shattering bid for Mbappé underlines the financial muscle rapidly accumulating in Saudi Arabian football.
Despite Al-Hilal's offer being, quite frankly, totally bonkers, there have reportedly been no actual discussions between the Saudi club and Mbappé himself or his representatives, highlighting that right now Madrid remains his number one choice. PSG are apparently willing to accept the €300 million bid, but Mbappé himself is widely expected to fulfill his long-held personal ambition of a ‘Galactico’ move to the Spanish capital and the famous Santiago Bernabeu.
Al-Hilal's reported €200 million salary offer for just one single season, coupled with the frankly obscene sums he would likely command in sponsorship and commercial endorsements if he were to accept the deal, could see Mbappé's earnings rocket beyond an almost unfathomable €700 million for just twelve months work—a sum that would likely remain beyond all comprehension for the vast majority of people on earth. But Mbappé's dream remains an eventual switch to the iconic Real Madrid.
Mbappé looked set to join Real Madrid last summer before performing a dramatic U-turn and extending his contract at the Parc des Princes in Paris at the eleventh hour. Al-Hilal's bid for Mbappé once again highlights the levels of financial clout currently being wielded by Saudi Arabian football clubs, with Al-Hilal among four majority-owned by the kingdom.
PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi remains hopeful Mbappé will commit to the Parisian project, saying "If Kylian wants to stay, we want him to stay. But he needs to sign a new contract. We don’t want to lose the best player in the world for free; we can’t do that.”
Al-Hilal attempted a similar, albeit ultimately unsuccessful, tactic earlier this summer, offering Argentine icon Lionel Messi over £350 million annually to join them from PSG. However, the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner ended up opting for a more sedate move to David Beckham's MLS franchise Inter Miami instead.
Al-Hilal are part of a quartet of Saudi Arabian football clubs majority owned by Saudi Arabia's lucrative Public Investment Fund. The same financial entity also has a controlling stake in Newcastle United. It has been one of the most aggressive Saudi clubs in the transfer market. They have already secured high-profile signings like Rúben Neves, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Kalidou Koulibaly and also appear close to finalizing deals for two forwards: Malcom from Zenit St Petersburg and Aleksandar Mitrovic from Fulham.
The Public Investment Fund's majority ownership of Al-Hilal and other Saudi Pro League teams, as well as its controlling stake in Premier League side Newcastle United, demonstrates the fund's ambitious aims to transform Saudi Arabia into a global sporting powerhouse.
For now, Mbappé stays silent as the very richest clubs on the planet vie it out in one of football's greatest-ever transfer sagas for his coveted signature. His dream move to the 'Royal' club of Europe, Real Madrid, however, remains by far the most likely outcome.
