Biggest contract in sport history tempts baseball star to join city rivals

Major League Baseball star Juan Soto has agreed sport’s biggest ever contract, worth $765m (£599m), to join the New York Mets.

The Dominican’s 15-year deal eclipses Shohei Ohtani’s $700m contract with the LA Dodgers, signed last year, although that is worth more per season.

Soto, a free agent after leaving the New York Yankees, is set to receive a $75m (£59m) signing-on fee for joining their crosstown rivals.

The total value of Soto’s contract will increase to $805m (£631m) if the Mets exercise an option to void an opt-out clause after five years. 

Soto, 26, helped the Yankees reach the 2024 World Series with a career-high 41 home runs but turned down fresh terms from the New York-based club.

The agreement was reported by Major League Baseball’s official website, MLB.com, which added that it was contingent on Soto passing routine medical tests.

Top MLB contracts have shot up in value in recent years, with Ohtani blowing the previous benchmark – Mike Trout’s 12-year, $427m deal with the LA Angels in 2019 – out of the water.

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ 10-year, $450m contract agreed in 2023 is the biggest in the NFL. 

Cristiano Ronaldo’s two-and-a-half-year, €500m (£414m) deal with Saudi club Al Nassr is among the biggest in sport and by far the most lucrative in football on an annual basis.

The biggest contract in NBA history is Jayson Tatum’s five-year, $314m deal with the Boston Celtics signed earlier this year.