Antoine Griezmann handed career advice ahead of ‘tactical’ MLS transfer

Antoine Griezmann will join Orlando City in the summer but it might not only be Major League Soccer on his mind in the United States.

The French icon will finish the campaign with Atletico Madrid, leaving as their leading scorer of all-time.

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The 35-year-old quits Europe as a modern great having won the 2018 World Cup, as well as finishing runner-up in 2022.

He also finished both tournaments as the top assist provider, while he won the Bronze Ball and the Silver Boot in 2018.

He retired from international duty in 2024, a move that has helped prolong his domestic career.

Upon the announcement of his deal, Griezmann said: “I am very excited to begin this next chapter of my career.

“From my first conversations with the club, I could feel a strong ambition and a clear vision for the future, and that really spoke to me.

“I look forward to making Orlando my new home.”

As he continues to impress this season, some felt the deal was happening a year too soon.

Others who have followed his exploits off the pitch, though, are less surprised.

The creative forward has long been a fan of American sports like NFL and NBA.

Meanwhile, he has also plunged head-first into the world of sports trading cards.

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Grizi Cards

Griezmann and his brother Theo run ‘Grizi Cards’ where the player sells products on their online store as well as opening boxes for themselves and fans.

Even during his unveiling he opened packs of Topps’ latest Chrome MLS set.

And it might just be that Griezmann has opted for a switch stateside in a bid to transistion into a new career adjacent to football.

“I think that was very tactical by him,” says Harry Reynolds, founder of the London Card show.

“I think obviously financially the MLS is definitely a league on the up. But for Grizi Cards I can imagine that it had something to do with that, the accessibility to cards certainly will have gone up because of that.”

Reynolds has witnessed first-hand the growth of the sports trading card industry.

His first event in 2021 was held in a sports hall and attended by just 40 people, while the next is set to host around 20,000 visitors at Excel London on April 17-19.

Asked the advice he has for Griezmann, should the Frenchman be planning to cement himself in the industry during his Orlando stint, Reynolds insists he the world is his oyster.

“It’s tricky because athletes need to find the fine line between making a business successful but still performing in their designated industry.

“I think it’s endless, I think he’s got a good relationship with YouTubers, so from that perspective content could be aligned, whether [he opens] a shop, that’s not uncommon in America.

“With who he is, he’d get that recognition if he went to other kind of sporting events like NBA and NFL.

“Now, whether someone like him wants to be in front of a camera that’s something which he needs to decide, I think he’s got the opportunity and he gets involved in whatnot breaks.

Topps

“To put it simply, he gets involved in The Hobby, he doesn’t just sit from the background and go, oh yeah I want that card, that card, that card and I’m going to do it from an anonymous eBay account, he doesn’t mind facing up and just entering a break as Antoine Griezmann and that’s how you know he loves The Hobby.

“It could come down to him being more in front of a camera and getting more involved in The Hobby from a content perspective or it could be growing a shop or all that kind of thing.”