Soto's record $1b deal bigger than Ohtani's

Baseball superstar Juan Soto made history on Dec 8 when he agreed to a 15-year, US$765 million (S$1.03 billion) contract – the largest deal ever in professional sports – with the New York Mets, according to multiple media reports.

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None of the money in the deal is deferred, and the contract could end up being worth over US$800 million, reported ESPN.

The 26-year-old Dominican joins the Mets after spending one season with their cross-town rival Yankees, who gave the outfielder a one-year, US$21.05 million qualifying offer that was turned down on Nov 19.

The New York Post reported that the Yankees were willing to fork out US$760 million over 16 years to bring back Soto, but the Mets ended up outbidding them.