Neymar joined Al Hilal from Paris Saint-Germain in August 2023 on a two-year contract, for a fee of about €90 million ($97.6m) and a reported salary of around $100 million a year. It was one of the biggest signings of the Saudi Pro League’s spending spree. It ended early: injuries limited him to seven appearances and one goal, and Al Hilal and Neymar terminated the contract by mutual consent in January 2025, after which he went home to Santos.
Neymar at Al Hilal: the deal in numbers
| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| Joined | August 2023, from PSG |
| Transfer fee | About €90m ($97.6m) |
| Contract | Two years, to mid-2025 |
| Reported salary | About $100m a year |
| Appearances | 7 (league and cup) |
| Goals | 1 |
| Left | January 2025, by mutual consent |
Salary figures for Saudi Pro League contracts are not published, so the $100 million is the figure widely reported at the time of the move, not a confirmed one. When the deal was first announced, some outlets reported far higher numbers.
Why it went wrong
Neymar played only a handful of games before tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee on international duty with Brazil in October 2023. His one goal for Al Hilal came against Nassaji Mazandaran in the AFC Champions League group stage on 3 October 2023, before the injury.
He was out for about a year. He returned in October 2024, but a hamstring injury soon stopped him again.
How the contract ended
Al Hilal announced in late January 2025 that the contract had been ended by mutual consent, with about five months left to run. According to ESPN, Neymar gave up between $25 million and $30 million of the roughly $65 million still owed to him to make the move back to Santos, the club where he started his career.
What happened next
Back at Santos, Neymar extended his contract in January 2026 to run until the end of the year, with the aim of getting into Brazil’s World Cup squad. Carlo Ancelotti picked him for the 2026 World Cup, but a calf injury limited him to two appearances: 15 minutes against Scotland in the group stage, and a substitute appearance in the round of 16 against Norway, where he scored a late penalty in a 2-1 defeat on 5 July 2026 at MetLife Stadium.
After that match Neymar retired from international football, saying: “I tried. It started here, at MetLife Stadium, and I finished here.” He leaves as Brazil’s record goalscorer.
Photo credit: Alamy