FC Cincinnati have made contact with Neymar's representatives about a potential MLS transfer, per ESPN. The Ohio club want to know his interest level and — crucially — what it would cost. At 34, with a knee problem, a contract at Santos running to 2026, and a World Cup spot still unconfirmed, the timing is complicated. But this is real.
Any move is almost certainly a post-World Cup project. Neymar has been absent from the Brazil squad since October 2023 but continues to lobby publicly for a recall. Carlo Ancelotti has said fitness is the only condition for selection. That gives the Santos forward a clear target — and any transfer decision a natural deadline.
The knee is the real story right now
Neymar has managed just six appearances this season. A knee procedure during the most recent international break was described by Santos coach Cuca as preparation to get him 'raring to go' ahead of the World Cup. Whether that optimism holds is another matter — this is a player whose injury history has defined the back half of his career as much as his football has.
For FC Cincinnati, the logic is straightforward. They've been one of MLS's most consistent sides recently — two Supporters' Shields, a second-place finish last season, back-to-back CONCACAF Champions Cup appearances. They're not a project club chasing headlines. They're a club that could genuinely argue they offer a competitive environment, not just a retirement package.
What Neymar would bring — and what he'd cost
The career numbers are not in dispute. 374 goals in 625 club appearances. Brazil's all-time top scorer with 79 goals in 128 caps. The question was never talent — it was availability. MLS clubs signing players at this stage are always buying potential, not certainty.
That uncertainty matters for anyone pricing this transfer in any market. A fit Neymar in MLS changes FC Cincinnati's profile entirely — domestically and in CONCACAF. An injured one changes nothing except the wage bill.
Ancelotti said it plainly: fit, and he's considered. Brazil play France and Croatia in the recent break — a 2-1 loss and a 3-1 win respectively — as the World Cup buildup intensifies. Neymar is watching from the outside, knee in a brace, waiting to see if he gets the call he believes he deserves.
