BOTH Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo know a shrewd business move when they see one.
Off the pitch, the pair have various business interests, including fashion lines, museums and in the case of the Inter Miami star, a purported Chinese theme park.
But it’s hotels the two, who have now won the Ballon d’Or 13 times between them, just can’t stop collecting, just like they’re playing a game of Monopoly.
Messi, 36, bought the Seasun Fona in S’Illot, Majorca to add to his hotel portfolio that includes spots in Ibiza and Barcelona.
And in 2021 he added to that with a 141-room ski resort in the Pyrenees.
While Ronaldo, 38, went down the budget route, establishing the Pestana CR7 hotel chain in his hometown of Madeira and Lisbon, both in Portugal.
He’s also added venues in Madrid and New York, and has plans for new sites including a 150-room high-end destination in Manchester’s Picadilly Gardens district in 2023.
There’s never been much between them on the pitch, and it’s just as close when it comes to being a better hotelier.
Here we take a peek inside some of the jewels in their crowns.
HOTEL MIM IBIZA ES VIVE
The jewel of Messi’s business empire, the Argentinian legend bought the 52-room luxury adults-only hotel in early 2018.
In fact, the stunning Art Deco style building, based just of off the beautiful Figueretas beach on the south eastern coast of the Balearic island, was said to have been eyed up by Ronaldo before Messi swooped.
The £525-per-night resort was originally opened as a hostel in 2001, before it was renovated by British designer Sean Cochrane in 2014.
Hotel MiM Ibiza Es Vive boasts a stunning rooftop bar, and a majestic pool surrounded by comfortable sun loungers.
Back in 2018, the hotel hit the headlines after SunSport EXCLUSIVELY revealed the resort was going to be the base for a four-day lesbian sex party.
TripAdvisor rating: 4.5 out of 5
PESTANA CR7 FUNCHAL
Ronaldo’s first hotel was opened to massive fanfare in July 2016.
At the time he said: “I wanted to be in the hotel industry for quite a while and the opportunity happened quite naturally as a result of the relationship with the owner and chairman of the Pestana Hotel Group, Dionísio Pestana, who built the largest international hotel brand of Portuguese origin starting with one first hotel on my home island, Madeira.”
And although it’s a budget hotel, with rooms costing as little as £79 per night off season, it does have a luxurious 4-star rating.
The property can be found on the waterfront opposite Funchal’s cruise ship terminal, is a short ten-minute walk to the city centre and is surrounded by cafes and bars.
With a nod to its footballing owner, there’s some novel designs with its decor, including astro-turf lined bathrooms.
And the rooms themselves (all 49 of them) are comfortable, if not a tad small.
The rooftop deck features a sauna, which offers views of Madeira’s mountainous landscape.
Food-wise, the more adventurous eater can try the CR7 Kobe beef burger with foie gras, but it’ll cost you around £21.
TripAdvisor rating: 4.5 out of 5
HOTEL MIM SITGES
Knowing his surroundings well, Messi reportedly splashed £26m on his first hotel in Sitges, a coastal town in Catalonia, southwest of Barcelona in 2017.
The four-star property on the Avenida Sofia boasts 77 rooms, five of those being junior suites, while one is a superior suite.
The 3,300 square foot space has a swimming pool on the top floor, which has an scenic view of the sea and Sitges beach.
Other amenities include a spa that covers a variety of of treatments and massages, as well as a VIP DUO cabin for couples treatments and an oxygen cabin.
Food and drink can be found at the Sky Bar, which serves refreshing cocktails and tapas dishes.
And an evening meal can be enjoyed at the Hotel MiM Sitges restaurant, which serves Mediterranean and local fayre.
To stay in a double room, it’ll cost you around £90-per night, which is reasonable for the outskirts of Barcelona.
TripAdvisor rating: 4 out of 5
PESTANA CR7 LISBOA
After the success of his Madeira hotel, Ronaldo soon set his sights on the coastal Portuguese capital, Lisbon.
It’s situated in a lovely part of the city, close to the downtown waterfront and therefore perfect for sightseeing, shopping and bar-hopping.
And his second digs pays more of a homage to his footballing career than his first.
Like Messi’s Ibiza hotel, the design follows an Art Deco theme, and features plenty of Ronaldo memorabilia that adorns the rooms and the reception.
For those who can’t bear to be cut off from the internet, the hotel provides complimentary mobile phones if you need to get online, and you can even take them outside with you.
Football fanatics won’t miss a match, with the Corner Bar and Bistro offering big screen TVs playing all the major sporting events.
They offer a menu of mini-hamburgers, filled potato skins, as well as steaks, fish, and some traditional Portuguese dishes, including seafood stews.
TripAdvisor rating: 4.5 out of 5
HOTEL MIM MALLORCA
In 2019, Messi bought the 95-room, 198 bed Hotel Seasun Fona in Majorca in 2019.
It reopened under a different name and is now called the Hotel MiM Mallorca after a big refurb.
This MiM now boasts 98 rooms and suites, two outdoor swimming pools, SPA, solarium terrace and SKY Bar.
Style-wise, it’s got a typically Mediterranean feel and sits beside the sandy beaches of S’Illot.
If you are looking for a kid-free place to stay, this is your best option – it’s an adults only hotel.
Rooms for next summer are going for the reasonable rate of £104-per-night.
TripAdvisor rating: 4.5 out of 5
PESTANA CR7 MARRAKECH
Located on M Avenue, it’s primarily placed to enjoy the best of Marrakech.
This hotel is surrounded by restaurants and galleries, to enjoy the more cultural side of Morocco, and is close to the famous Jemaa el-Fna market.
The hotel boasts a rooftop pool, spacious and stylish rooms, and all-important Wi-fi.
For the more health conscious, there’s a first class spa as well as a state-of-the-art gym.
However, it’s the priciest of Ronaldo’s hotels – with rooms costing as much as £200-per-night in the summer. Tripadvisor members and guests say it is worth it though.
TripAdvisor rating: 4.5 out of 5
WHAT’S TO COME
Both successful hoteliers, Ronaldo and Messi are expanding their hotel businesses.
Messi made his biggest acquisition only in April this year, when he splashed out on the ski hotel next to the lifts at Spain’s largest winter resort in the heart of the Pyrenees in the Aran Valley.
The four-star destination includes a spa, an indoor swimming pool, a fitness centre and mountain guide services.
Ronaldo, on the other hand, is planning on going international with his expansion.
The Portuguese wants to take the Pestana CR7 brand to Paris as well as Manchester.
These two greats of the modern game may not being go head-to-head on the pitch like they used to in LaLiga, but now they are rival hoteliers.
