Biggest deal in history of sport: Juan Soto and New York Mets agree reported £600m ($765m) contract
Juan Soto has agreed a 15-year, $765m (£600m) contract with Major League Baseball’s New York Mets, reportedly the largest contract in sports history.
Details of the deal were revealed by multiple U.S. sources, although the Mets have yet to confirm the news as the 26-year-old Dominican needs to complete a physical.
Soto, coming off the best season of his career with the New York Yankees, will be Major League Baseball’s most popular free agent this offseason, once again showing off his elite ability to get on base.
His career on-base percentage is the highest among active players (.421), only Yankees teammate Aaron Judge OBP is better in 2024, with only three players hitting more home runs.
Major League Baseball website says, external Soto will receive a $75m signing bonus, with no deferred payments, in a deal that could ultimately be worth as much as $800m (£627m).
The total value of the deal exceeds the $700m (£558m) 10-year contract Shohei Ohtani signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers last year, of which the Japanese star agreed to defer payment of $680m (£541m).
A deferred payment deal is when a player agrees to receive some cash after the contract expires. and is commonly used in American sports., external
Soto’s new contract is considered the largest in total value in professional sports.
some of the other biggest Including Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott In September he agreed a four-year contract extension worth $240m (£183m), making him the highest-paid player in NFL history.
In 2020, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes signed a 10-year contract extension worth $450 million, which is the highest total value contract in the NFL. Prescott’s annual salary is the highest.
In the NBA, the Boston Celtics Signed Jayson Tatum to new five-year contract Reportedly worth $314m (£245m).
In football, Portuguese striker Cristiano Ronaldo Have a contract Al Nasr’s contract with Inter Miami is reportedly worth more than €200m (£176.5m) a year until 2025, while Lionel Messi’s deal at Inter Miami is reportedly worth up to $60m (£47m) a year GBP).
