5-Time Champions League Winner Casemiro Joins MLS Side Inter Miami to Play With Messi

Veteran Brazilian national team midfielder Casemiro, 34, who left English professional football club Manchester United, has joined Inter Miami of Major League Soccer (MLS) in the United States, becoming teammates with football legend Lionel Messi of Argentina.

However, attention is focused on the outcome as the MLS announced it has launched an investigation into suspected rule violations during Casemiro's transfer process to Miami.

Miami announced Casemiro's signing today, July 23.

The club stated, "Casemiro, who boasts a record of winning the UEFA Champions League five times, has joined as a free agent," adding, "His contract runs until the end of the 2027-2028 season, with an option to extend until June 2029."

Having started his professional career at Sao Paulo in Brazil, Casemiro subsequently wore the jerseys of Real Madrid (Spain), FC Porto (Portugal), and Manchester United, playing across European stages and recording 73 goals and 61 assists in 663 career professional appearances.

Casemiro has lifted a total of 21 trophies with professional clubs.

This includes five UEFA Champions League titles and three La Liga regular season titles won with Real Madrid.

After moving to Manchester United in the summer of 2022 for a transfer fee of 70 million pounds (approximately 138.5 billion won), Casemiro made 160 appearances over four seasons, recording 26 goals and 14 assists while contributing to League Cup and FA Cup triumphs.

He has also made 91 appearances for the Brazilian national team, recording 10 goals and 6 assists.

He led Brazil to victory at the 2019 Copa America and played in the World Cup for three consecutive tournaments starting from the 2018 Russia tournament.

At the recently concluded 2026 North and Central America World Cup, he started all five matches played by Brazil, recording 1 goal and 1 assist.

Meanwhile, the MLS announced that it has launched an investigation into allegations of wrongdoing regarding Miami's acquisition of Casemiro.

In a statement released on this day, the league said, "The league is gathering all relevant information and will have no further comment until its review is complete."

ESPN reported, citing sources, that the LA Galaxy filed a complaint with the MLS for rule violations, alleging that Miami contacted Casemiro without securing his discovery rights.

On the other hand, Miami is reportedly maintaining that it reached an agreement with the LA Galaxy regarding Casemiro's priority negotiation rights.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.