How Lionel Messi Has Earned Michael Jordan More Money Than What He Made in 13 Years in the NBA

Lionel Messi left football fans in tears as he announced his recent departure from F.C. Barcelona after 21 long years. The world’s favorite football icon has transferred to Paris Saint-Germain and in turn, the French club has seen a sudden boost in its bank account. Amidst Messi’s move to PSG, NBA legend Michael Jordan has already earned a lump sum of $7 million.

Lionel Messi has ramped up the sales of the PSG club in a week in stunning figures. He also altered his jersey number from No. 10 to No. 30, which has led to fans standing in long queues outside merchandise stores. His No. 30 jerseys have already brought in $140 million to PSG with a whopping sale column.

Michael Jordan and Nike’s Air Jordan are minting money on No.30 Messi jerseys

PSG’s shirts are manufactured by Nike but sold under their famous sub-section, Air Jordan, MJ‘s. Given that the brand earns a 5% cut of shirt sales, the Chicago Bulls star has made $7 million from these figures in the past week.

According to statistics, that’s more than he made in 13 of his 15 NBA seasons. In none of his seasons before 1996 did the Bulls superstar surpass the $4 million mark in earnings. It was only during the 1996 and 1997 seasons did MJ earn in mind-boggling numbers, making over $30 million in the last two years.

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PSG has already sold $140 million in shirts since Lionel Messi signed with the club last week, per @TyCSports.

The interesting part? With a 5% royalty from the Jordan Brand, Michael Jordan made $7 million personally.

That’s more than he earned during 13 of his 15 NBA seasons pic.twitter.com/vrX16RoVNY

— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) August 20, 2021

The Air Jordan-PSG deal of 2018

Back in 2018, the Air Jordan logo appeared on the PSG kit for the first time, replacing the Nike logo. It was right after PSG signed a four-year deal with Michael Jordan’s marque. Well, two all-time greats, Lionel Messi and Michael Jordan, are minting huge sums together.

All that’s left is for Messi to take to the field wearing his No.30 jersey, and MJ’s brand will only see more on their plate.

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