Real Madrid left winger Vinicius Junior is the news after a bizarre Ballon d’Or snub in which a player who didn’t even win the Player of the Season in his league (his teammate did) and lost the Champions League in direct competition to Vini Jr. won the once-prestigious award despite having numbers similar to Declan Rice.
Rodri’s Ballon d’Or victory has been met with scorn but also defenses of the decision that largely focus on debasing Vini Jr.’s character – even though he literally won the Socrates Award in 2023 for his humanitarian efforts to help those in need financially and combat racism – rather than praising Rodri in any material way.
Regardless of the lunacy perpetuated by the likes of Rebecca Lowe and others, Vinicius Jr. has also been embroiled in another story that is even weirder than this one.
A report from Relevo surfaced about how Vinicius Jr. is wanted by clubs around Europe, as well as Saudi Arabia, and they made it seem like there is a possibility of him leaving Real Madrid, even though the player has a one billion release clause and loves – and is loved by – the club.
Now, French outlet Foot Mercato is reporting that Vinicius Jr. has actually opened the door to the possibility of playing in the Saudi Pro League, and the Saudi Arabian government intend to sign him and pair him with Brazilian legend Neymar on Al-Hilal.
Foot Mercato write that Saudi Arabia pitched the project to Vini Jr. on a massive television screen and offered him a four-year contract with an unprecedented amount of money – probably enough to make even Kylian Mbappe and Cristiano Ronaldo’s eyes water.
On top of all that, the transfer rumor outlet reports that Vinicius Jr. would consider making such a jump to Saudi Arabia in 2026, at which point he would be in the prime of his career at 26.
If you are wondering when Vini Jr.’s contract with Real Madrid runs out, that would be in 2027, so picking out the year 2026 when he has one year left on his contract is reasonable.
But it’s just impossible to see Vinicius Jr. ever leaving Real Madrid. He won’t even walk on the badge, and he plays with so much passion for the club that you can tell he wants to be there for life.
And Florentino Perez and the club have constantly went to bat for him, even when his own fans and teammates were doubting him in 2020/21. They built the team around him, even after the Mbappe and Jude Bellingham signings, and they were incensed by the Ballon d’Or snub.
Saudi Arabia are going to try to pay Vinicius Jr. a boatload of money – enough for a literal country – and give him the pitch of playing with an icon from his country in Neymar, but it’s hard to see someone competing for the Ballon d’Or and the Champions League title every year going to a project that is more about glamor and money than actual sporting.
