Orlando City completed a major transfer on Tuesday (24), announcing the signing of forward Antoine Griezmann from Atlético de Madrid.
The French star will officially join Orlando in July, after completing the 2025/26 season with Atlético.
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Griezmann, whose name had long been linked with a move to MLS, signed a contract through the end of the 2027 season, with an option to extend for 2028.
The 2018 Fifa World Cup winner with France will occupy a “Designated Player” spot.
“Bringing Antoine to Orlando is a historic moment not only for our club, but for our city, our fans, and Major League Soccer,” said Mark Wilf, owner and chairman of Orlando City.
French legend
Griezmann helped France win the 2018 World Cup and reached the 2022 final, where they lost on penalties to Lionel Messi’s Argentina.
He retired from international duty in 2024 as one of the most decorated players in the country’s history, with 137 caps and 44 goals.
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“Antoine is a complete footballer – creative, intelligent, clinical – and a proven winner on the biggest stages in the sport,” said Ricardo Moreira, Orlando City’s sporting director.
Top scorer
Griezmann leaves Atlético de Madrid as the club’s all-time top scorer, with 211 goals and 97 assists in 488 matches.
He also had spells with Barcelona and Real Sociedad. Named LaLiga’s best player in 2015-16, he finished third twice in the Ballon d’Or voting (2016 and 2018).
“I’m very excited to begin this next chapter of my career. From the very first conversations, I felt a strong ambition and a clear vision for the future,” Griezmann said.
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The Frenchman is the latest star to wear the Lions shirt, following in the footsteps of Kaká (2015-17) and Nani (2019-21).
He will complete the club’s trio of Designated Players alongside Croatian Marco Pašalić and Argentine Martín Ojeda.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.
