VALENCIA, SPAIN - MAY 11: Lionel Messi of FC Barcelona celebrates goal 0-1 during the La Liga Santander match between Levante v FC Barcelona at the Estadi Ciutat de Valencia on May 11, 2021 in Valencia Spain (Photo by David S. Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images)
On Sunday, Lionel Messi made his widely anticipated debut with Paris St-Germain, subbing into the match for Neymar rocking number 30 on his back at the 66th minute. PSG defeated Reims 2-0, both goals scored by Kilian Mbappe, who is rumored to soon sign with Real Madrid.
Messi’s debut was the most-watched French match ever in Spain, averaging over two million viewers. The game was broadcast in Spain on Telecinco, a free-to-air television channel operated by Mediaset España. The match was also streamed live on the Twitch channel of a Spanish streamer and esports commentator named Ibai Llanos, drawing an average broadcast of over 300,000 people.
Former Barca defender Gerard Pique bought the rights to the French league after Messi signed with PSG. His company, Kosmos, has reportedly planned to sublicense the rights for the rest of the season, as Telecinco and Llanos only secured the rights to Messi’s debut.
Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter!
A week of sports news in your in-box.
We find the sports news you need to know, so you don't have to.
Sophie Cunningham's now-famous 22-second stare-down with DeWanna Bonner has spawned one of the WNBA's biggest…
Syracuse opened the 2025 season 3–1, highlighted by a victory at Clemson. The win marked…
ESPN is cutting staff across the network for the first time in three years, with…
Bryson DeChambeau's turbulent week at the Open Championship took an unexpected political twist after he…
Soccer's global governing body has launched a formal disciplinary review of Argentina's national team following…
LIV Golf's rocky financial year got rockier this week after a broadcast technology partner took…