Did Mbappé get offered 1 billion dollars?
You saw the headlines: Kylian Mbappé, a one-year contract, and an unbelievable one billion dollar offer. It sounds like a typo, but is it true? The short answer is yes… and no.
That staggering figure, confirmed by top sports journalists, wasn’t for a single paycheck. The key to understanding the offer is knowing the money was split into two different pots: a massive payment for his club and an even larger one for the player himself. Here’s exactly where each dollar was supposed to go.
Why Is One Player Worth a Billion-Dollar Bid?
So, who exactly is Kylian Mbappé that a club would make such an offer? Think of him as a global phenomenon on the level of LeBron James, but for soccer. He’s the French superstar who, while still a teenager, led his country to a World Cup victory—the biggest trophy in the sport—and is widely considered one of the best players alive.
His rare combination of jaw-dropping speed, skill, and relative youth is what makes him a once-in-a-generation target. The offer from the Saudi club Al-Hilal was so astronomical that it prompted jokes from other sports icons worldwide. To even get the chance to sign a player of this caliber, however, the first massive check wasn’t for Mbappé himself.
The First Bucket: A $330 Million ‘Permission Slip’ for His Club
Unlike in some other sports, you can’t simply sign a player who is already under contract with another team. First, you have to pay their current club for the privilege. This payment is called a transfer fee, and it’s essentially a massive permission slip written out from one team to another. It’s the business side of the sport that happens entirely before a player even sees a contract.
Think of it like this: if a tech giant wanted to poach a star engineer from a rival, they might have to pay that rival a huge sum just to release the engineer from their employment agreement. According to numerous reports from top sports journalists, that’s exactly what Al-Hilal proposed. They offered a world-record $330 million (€300M) directly to Mbappé’s French club, Paris Saint-Germain (PSG).
None of that $330 million would have landed in Kylian Mbappé’s bank account; it was purely a club-to-club transaction. That fee alone would have shattered the previous record for the most expensive player in history. But it was only the beginning of the billion-dollar package.
The Second Bucket: A Staggering $776 Million Salary for Mbappé
With the $330 million transfer fee set aside for his club, the proposed salary for Mbappé himself was an almost unbelievable $776 million (€700M) for a single season. This figure represents the actual money he would earn, forming the second—and much larger—part of the billion-dollar package from Al-Hilal. It’s a number that completely redefines the pay scale not just in soccer, but in all of professional sports.
The proposed rate of earning is staggering:
- Per Year: ~$776,000,000
- Per Day: ~$2,150,000
- Per Second: ~$24.80
His proposed one-year salary alone would have surpassed the entire 2023 payroll for multiple Major League Baseball teams, including the Baltimore Orioles and Oakland A’s. The historic size of this offer begs an obvious question: Why would any club make such a monumental bid, especially for a player who might not even accept it?
Why Make an Offer You Know Might Be Rejected?
That historic offer wasn’t just about signing one player; it was about getting the world’s attention. For the Saudi Pro League, where the club Al-Hilal plays, making such a monumental bid was a massive marketing play. The league is on an ambitious mission to transform itself from a regional contest into a global powerhouse, capable of attracting the biggest names in soccer.
This strategy had already proven successful. Just months earlier, the league had shocked the world by signing superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, signaling that its ambitions were very real. The bid for Mbappé was the logical next step—an attempt to acquire the single most valuable young player on the planet and fast-track the league’s prestige.
In this context, making a record-shattering offer was a win-win. If Mbappé accepted, they’d get a generational talent. If he rejected, the sheer size of the number would still dominate headlines, sending a powerful message that they have the resources to compete with anyone. But for Mbappé himself, the decision wasn’t just about the money.
The Final Answer: Why Mbappé Said No
Presented with a contract that would have paid him over $24 a second, Mbappé turned it down—flatly. Reports confirmed his team refused to even enter discussions with the Saudi club, Al-Hilal. For Mbappé, the historic offer was apparently not even worth a conversation.
The reason for the swift rejection was about ambition. At this stage of his career, Mbappé’s primary goal is to win the most prestigious trophies in world soccer, like Europe’s Champions League. Leaving the continent, even for one incredibly lucrative year, would mean putting that dream on hold.
Ultimately, his decision sent a clear message about his priorities. While other top athletes joked online about taking the deal in a heartbeat, Mbappé chose legacy over the biggest payday in history. It was a choice that showed he is a player focused on being remembered as an all-time great, not just the wealthiest.
The Billion-Dollar Bid: A Summary
So, was the billion-dollar offer for Kylian Mbappé real? Yes, but the details are what matter.
- A formal offer exceeding $1 billion was made by Saudi club Al-Hilal.
- It was split into two parts: a $330 million transfer fee for his club (PSG) and a $776 million salary for him for one season.
- Mbappé rejected the offer to prioritize his career ambitions in Europe.
The headline was true, but the reality was far more interesting. The offer wasn’t just about money; it was a story of a league’s global ambition, a club’s savvy marketing, and a player who chose legacy over the richest paycheck in sports history.
