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Juan Soto has signed a $765m (\u00a3600m) deal with Major League Baseball’s New York Mets – the biggest contract in the history of the sport.<\/b><\/p>\n
The 15-year deal was confirmed on Wednesday after the 26-year-old Dominican completed a medical.<\/p>\n
“This is a seminal moment in franchise history,” Mets owners Steve and Alex Cohen said in a statement. <\/p>\n
“Juan Soto is a generational talent. He is not only bringing staggering historical statistics with him but also a championship pedigree.”<\/p>\n
Soto was set to be MLB’s most sought-after free agent this off-season having just had the best season of his career with the New York Yankees, with only three players hitting more home runs.<\/p>\n
Soto’s contract includes a $75m (\u00a358.7m) signing bonus and it eclipses the $700m (\u00a3558m) 10-year contract that Shohei Ohtani signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers last year, with the Japanese star agreeing to defer $680m (\u00a3541m) of the amount.<\/p>\n
Deferred-money deals are when players agree to be paid some of their cash after the time the contract covers, and are used frequently in American sports., external<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n Soto’s new deal is understood to be the largest in professional sports in total value.<\/p>\n Some of the other biggest include Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott<\/a> becoming the highest-paid player in NFL history in September by agreeing a four-year contract extension worth $240m (\u00a3183m).<\/p>\n In 2020, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes signed a 10-year contract extension worth $450m (\u00a3352m), which has the highest overall value in the NFL. Prescott has the highest annual salary though.<\/p>\n In the NBA, the Boston Celtics have tied Jayson Tatum down to a new five-year deal<\/a> worth a reported $314m (\u00a3245m).<\/p>\n And in football, Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo has a contract<\/a> with Al-Nassr until 2025 that is reportedly worth more than 200m euros (\u00a3176.5m) per year, while Lionel Messi’s deal at Inter Miami is reportedly worth up to $60m (\u00a347m) a year.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n