Atletico Madrid sporting director Mateu Alemany said striker Antoine Griezmann will remain at the club despite strong ties with Major League Soccer (MLS) Orlando City asd4.
Griezmann, 34, has been considering a possible move to the Florida club before the MLS transfer window closes at the end of March, but it now seems likely he will remain in the Spanish capital.
“I stand by what I said (before): he has a contract with us, he will stay with us,” Alemany said. Movistar ahead of Atletico’s La Liga match against Real Sociedad on Saturday. «There is nothing new for him; we have come full circle and are back to the beginning, where we were before.»
Griezmann, who won the FIFA World Cup with France in 2018, has a contract with Atletico until June 2027. The striker is a known admirer of American sport and has long been linked with a move to MLS.
Orlando City holds Griezmann’s ‘discovery rights’ – an MLS mechanism that gives one team priority to negotiate a player’s transfer, a source close to the discussions told AFP last week.
Griezmann has been rotated a lot by coach Diego Simeone this season and started the match against Real Sociedad on the bench. Atletico ousted Barcelona in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey this week and reached April’s final in Seville, where they will face Real Sociedad.
Simeone previously said Griezmann had to choose what suits him best, but hoped the striker would stay and feature in the final.
Griezmann, Atletico’s all-time top scorer, last won a trophy with the Rojiblancos in 2018 before making an ill-fated move to Barcelona and subsequently returning.
Published on March 8, 2026
