Andrew PetersJanuary 16, 2025

Yasser Bakhsh/Getty Images

Neymar could be joining the MLS soon.

Per ESPN’s Jeff Carlisle, the Brazil and Al Hilal star is in talks with three MLS teams about a possible transfer. According to Carlisle, one of the three teams Neymar is talking to is Chicago Fire FC, but Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami is not currently in the running.

Last week, Inter Miami manager Javier Mascherano said that while “every coach in the world wants” Neymar, MLS restrictions would make adding the striker “impossible.”

“We cannot talk about Ney because we have nothing,” Mascherano told reporters at MLS media day. “Obviously Ney is a great player. Every coach in the world wants him but at the moment, but you know the MLS rules around the salary cap. So for us in this moment, it’s impossible to try to think about him.”

According to Carlisle, Neymar is still “holding out hope” of joining his former Barcelona teammates Messi and Luis Suarez at Inter Miami.

Neymar, who was with Paris Saint-Germain from 2017 to 2023, joined Saudi Arabian club Al Hilal in 2023 for a fee of $97.6 million. His time with the club has not gone as he would have hoped as he dealt with a handful of injuries since his arrival.

Shortly after making his debut for his new club in September of 2023, he suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee while on international duty in October, ending his club season after just five games.

He returned to the field this fall, but a hamstring injury has limited his play this season. He’s played just seven games and has registered one goal during his time with Al Hilal.

His Al Hilal contract runs through June and he can begin negotiating contracts with a new team.

Even if he is unable to join Messi, Neymar’s MLS debut would undoubtedly be highly anticipated if he decides to join the league.