Saudi Pro League club Al-Hilal shocked the global sports fraternity a few days ago after conjuring a staggering billion-dollar deal to bring French sensation Kylian Mbappe to the Middle East. Meanwhile, Mbappe has stunned the world in turn by rejecting the generational deal. Al-Hilal’s offer promised the Paris Saint-Germain star a whopping $776 million for just a single season in Saudi Arabia. The rest of the money from the $1 billion contract would have gone to Mbappe’s club PSG as transfer fees. Members of the NBA community had a field day after details of Mbappe’s contract spread across the Internet. Recently, Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young reacted to the 24-year-old rejecting the Saudi club’s generous offer.
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The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has initiated a radical push to introduce their domestic league to a global audience by signing quality players from the European leagues. Al-Hilal is one of the four Saudi Pro League clubs(which also includes Ronaldo’s club Al-Nassr) that has restructured its financial make-up in recent times and is now majority owned by the Saudi government’s sovereign wealth fund, PIF. This has allowed the clubs from the oil-rich country to flex their financial muscles in an attempt to sign big names, like Mbappe and Messi.
Trae Young reacts to Mbappe rejecting Al-Hilal’s offer
Mbappe’s deal has left its ripple effects in the NBA as well. While this year’s free agency has seen NBA stars bagging unprecedented deals, Al-Hilal’s offer stands on a territory of its own. Therefore, Trae Young couldn’t help but express his astonishment on Twitter after Mbappe rejected the highly lucrative deal.
“You know everybody like “Mbappè a better man than me”..[laughing emojis],” Young tweeted. The 24-year-old signed a five-year $215 million extension last year with the Hawks, which will see him earning a little over $40 million this year. Therefore, it’s not surprising to see Young biting his fingers after Mbappe rejected the deal.
To put things into perspective, Jaylen Brown is set to earn a maximum salary of $69,125,872/year from his recently signed five-year $304 million max extension, that too in the last year of his deal in 2028-29. However, Brown’s contract, which is the richest deal in NBA history, still pales in comparison to Mbappe’s $776 million per year offer. The 2018 World Cup winner currently earns around $128 million per year.
NBA stars were baffled by Mbappe’s offer
NBA stars had a field day trying to come to terms with Mbappe’s insane deal. Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo tried to impersonate the French soccer star in an hilarious attempt to bag the deal.
On the other hand, Portland star Damian Lillard, who’s in the midst of some heated trade rumors himself, couldn’t help but express his disbelief on Twitter. It will be interesting to see how they’d react after learning that Mbappe has actually rejected the offer.
