FC Barcelona Legend Neymar Confirms Al-Hilal 2025 Exit And Next Destination, Reports UOL
Neymar has told people at Santos that he will return to Brazil in 2025.
Football superstar Neymar told Santos’ players and some staff that he will leave Al-Hilal in 2025 and return to Brazil according to UOL Esporte, which cited an anonymous Santos board member.
To a rapturous ovation, Neymar brought out the Campeonato Paulista trophy on Sunday night ahead of his boyhood outfit Santos beating Palmeiras 1-0 in the first leg of the Sao Paulo State Championship Final.
The 32-year-old hasn’t been seen on the pitch in a competitive capacity for some time, however, after rupturing his ACL in a 2-0 loss Brazil suffered to Uruguay back in October.
Shortly before that, he completed a lucrative move to Al-Hilal from Paris Saint-Germain yet mustered just five appearances in all competitions for the Pro League outfit.
Neymar is expected to return to action when the 2024/2025 European club season kicks off. Reportedly, however, he already has his next destination in mind after completing the second of the two years on his contract in the Middle East.
As explained by UOL Esporte, Neymar quickly walked through the Vila Belmiro dressing room of his first club Santos, and informed their players “that he is returning to play in the Brazilian Championship in 2025”.
UOL later confirmed Neymar’s confession with a member of Santos’ board, which follows on from the forward warning he would make such a move during a visit to the club last year.
Were Neymar to fulfil his promise, the development would bring with it the first time he has played in his homeland since 2013.
He contested the Campeonato Paulista that year as well, and then completed a transfer reported as being worth $93 million (€86.2 million) to FC Barcelona which kicked off his European career.
Neymar has also shown an interest in one day playing in the United States, and recently met with Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham who currently boasts the Brazilian’s former Barca teammates Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba across his roster.
Yet in the short term, playing at least a full year at Santos puts Neymar in good stead to represent Brazil at the 2026 World Cup held in North America.
