As has been happening in recent seasons, the name of Real Madrid’s Gareth Bale is emerging as one of the big stories of the upcoming transfer market. Rumours about his future are constant and the most audible now point to an offer to an MLS team.

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Bale offered to MLS club

According to a piece by Jeff Rueter for The Athletic, those at the Santiago Bernabéu put the services of the 30-year-old boy from Cardiff on the table for a club in the US top flight. The proposal, however, fell on deaf ears.

After explaining that MLS clubs were no longer chasing European stars as they reached the end of their careers offering a final last big payday, Rueter highlighted how this affects Bale.

‘Of course, that doesn’t mean the players’ agents and clubs won’t try reaching out to MLS teams. Bale was already offered to at least one Eastern Conference club but swiftly turned down, sources tell The Athletic. The reality is that the days of paying over $7 million annually for a player with little return-on-investment potential are largely in the past for MLS, pandemic or otherwise.’

The salary (right now Bale receives about 14.5 million euros a year net) would be the main handicap to a move to the US. It cannot be ruled out though, especially with recent comments from the player and his agent, but may not happen for a while yet. The coronavirus pandemic is likely to have an effect on many otherwise planned transfers but Bale has also made it clear on numerous times that he plans to fulfil his contract (until 2022) due to his love of Madrid life. Is that enough if it is made clear to him that he is not part of Zinedine Zidane’s plans? Only time will tell, and Los Blancos are watching closely, potentially considering taking a huge hit in transfer fee to make it happen.