Lionel Messi's move to Inter Miami has the potential to be one of the most seismic sports acquisitions in America's long athletic history.

With Messi agreeing to join David Beckham's MLS team, the reigning World Cup champion is making the trip many aging European stars have before.

In doing so, he has turned down hundreds of millions from Saudi Arabia and a romantic return to Barcelona, instead opting for a 'quieter life' for his family, in his $9million South Florida condo.

On a wider scale, the move will hugely boost the profile of American soccer, and could prove vital in dispelling the constant and incorrect belief that the sport lacks quality in the United States.

In the immediate future, Messi's move to the Sunshine State should buoy the spirits of supporters of Inter Miami - a team sitting in the bottom of Major League Soccer's standings. 

Lionel Messi has officially joined Inter Miami after departing Paris Saint-Germain

The club recently sacked their manager, Phil Neville, after a string of poor performances in league play. 

But this transfer has the chance to take the sport to further heights within the United States as so many athletes have done before. Now, Messi has the chance to make his mark on American sports like no other foreign sportsman ever has - but he should take note of the precedent set by those who have made this journey before him.

Here, Mail Sport takes a look at the other top sports stars who have trodden a similar path and made a name for themselves in the USA.

Pele

There's no better place to start than with the man who kicked off America's slow roll back towards becoming a soccer country.

Soccer's long civil war in the United States in the early 1920s saw the sport fall out of favor nationally.

But, the arrival of Pele in the original North American Soccer League sparked a growing interest in 'football' in the USA.

Sure, the New York Cosmos would team Pele up with the likes of Franz Beckenbauer and Carlos Alberto. Sure, the league would go on to bring in names like Johan Cruyff, Gerd Muller, Bobby Moore, Eusebio, and George Best to other teams.

But none of them had such an impact on the growth of the sport as Pele did.

From 1975-1977 his impact on NASL brought in more eyeballs than it ever could have before. 

An NASL Playoff match in 1977 still holds the record for the highest attended non-regular-season American soccer fixture as 77,691 watched Pele's Cosmos defeat the Fort Lauderdale Strikers 8-3.

Even after retiring, Pele's impact on the sport in the country remained and helped get the ball rolling for the US to invest more into its national team.

Eventually, the USA won the rights to host the 1994 FIFA World Cup and two years after that, MLS played its first season.

It could be argued that without Pele, the sport would not have the same impact nationally that it does today.

Lewis Hamilton

Formula One's growth in the United States in recent years can be credited to a number of things. Racing's sustained popularity in the country was combined with a declining interest in NASCAR. Add in the impact of Drive to Survive and the marketing of American-based Liberty Media, and you've got a perfect storm.

At the center of that storm was Lewis Hamilton, who was on his way to becoming the sport's most statistically successful driver.

As the sport's first black driver, Hamilton has made in-roads into American society in more areas than just his motorsport endeavors.

Outside of his highly successful racing career - which has seen Hamilton win the most United States Grand Prix races of any driver (6) - his celebrity has seen him break into the world of fashion, business, and even Hollywood.

On top of all of that, Hamilton has purchased a house in Colorado and even has a minority share in the NFL's Denver Broncos - ensuring that he'll be in the United States for years to come.

Rory McIlroy

As the era of Tiger Woods' dominance faded, Rory McIlroy slowly became one of the most influential and popular golfers on the PGA Tour.

Since his pro debut at the 2007 Open Championship, McIlroy has recorded 23 PGA Tour victories - with his very first victory coming at the Quail Hollow Championship (now the Wells Fargo) in 2010.

McIlroy won his first ever major at the 2011 US Open at Congressional Country Club in Maryland. 

He quickly followed that up the next year with a PGA Championship crown at Kiawah Island in South Carolina, then did a double winning the 2014 Open at Royal Liverpool and the 2014 PGA Championship at Valhalla in Kentucky.

Beyond majors, McIlroy has won the FedEx Cup as the PGA Tour champion in 2016, 2019, and 2022.

The Irishman has re-located to Jupiter, Florida and married Erica Stoll - an American from upstate New York.

Tony Parker

With multiple NBA titles, All-Star selections, and All-NBA selections, Tony Parker is possibly the greatest foreign-born basketball star that the NBA will ever see.

Currently, he's in the top-10 for the most points all-time in the league with 4,045. That's the most by a foreign player in NBA history and 290 points higher than the next-closest foreigner in Hakeem Olajuwon.

As an elite point guard, it's no surprise that Parker also has the mark for the most assists by a foreign-born player with 1,143 - putting him sixth all-time ahead of players like Larry Bird, Kobe Bryant, and Michael Jordan.

Parker was a major contributor to four NBA championship winning teams while he was a member of the San Antonio Spurs. That includes 2007, when he won the Finals MVP.

Nowadays, Parker is the majority owner of ASVEL Basket in the French Pro A league based out of Lyon. 

Up until last season, Parker saw the development and rise of Victor Wembanyama - the next great basketball phenom and the consensus No. 1 overall pick, which coincidentally belongs to the San Antonio Spurs.

Alex Ovechkin

While Russia has had multiple iconic players in the sport of hockey, the accomplishments of Alex Ovechkin may surpass them all.

The Russian winger currently sits second all-time on the NHL's list of goal-scorers, just 72 behind tying the mark of Wayne Gretzky.

Ovechkin has been an icon in the National Hockey League ever since he was drafted by the Washington Capitals back in 2004.

At the age of 37, 'Ovi' remains one of the best goal scorers in the league and has come to define the NHL's new era of athlete with his speed and skill.

Ovechkin still keeps his Russian roots - with his family still mostly living in Moscow - but for hockey fans in the United States, he's become one of the greatest players they've ever seen.

David Beckham

Finally, it's only apt to compare Messi to the man who defined what it means to move to Major League Soccer.

While Beckham was still arguably in his prime when he moved to MLS in 2007, he never quite proved that whilst with the LA Galaxy.

During his time in Los Angeles, he only ended up playing a total of 118 matches for the club across the course of six seasons - which included two loan spells at AC Milan.

But Beckham's impact on soccer in the United States had less to do with his performance on the pitch and more of his influence off it.

Like Pele, the announcement of Beckham's arrival immediately grew the profile of Major League Soccer and his arrival was promoted for months. 

Not only did he give some form of credibility to the league, Beckham brought a level of stardom to MLS never seen before.

When he arrived, Beckham was given the right to buy an MLS expansion team in any market except for New York City with a fixed price tag of $25million baked into his contract. 

Since Inter Miami started play in 2020, Beckham has used his influence to court the likes of Gonzalo Higuain and Blaise Matuidi to South Florida.

But bringing Messi to his club is the crowning achievement in Beckham's tenure as an owner.  

Now, he has a gold mine on his hands - and he has the opportunity to pass his knowledge of the game off-pitch onto the latest player to join his club.

Reports indicate that part of Messi's contract includes the right for him to be a part owner of Inter Miami - meaning Beckham could be bringing him on as a business partner. 

There are two honorable mentions that were also considered for this list. 

Emma Raducanu had her greatest tennis success in the United States - becoming the first athlete to win a Grand Slam title after starting the tournament in the qualifiers when she took the 2021 US Open women's singles crown.

In hockey, Jaromir Jagr is still an iconic athlete as he still plays professionally at age 51 in his home country of the Czech Republic. 

Jagr won the Hart Trophy as the NHL's MVP in 1999, grabbed two Stanley Cups in 1991 and 1992, and is second in the league's all-time points list.