Alexis Sanchez's European career came to an end. The Chilean striker was announced this Tuesday as a new player for CF Montreal, a club with which he will play the remainder of the 2026 season and the 2027 campaign of Major League Soccer.
The 37-year-old attacker lands in Canada after closing his time at Sevilla and joins as a free agent. The agreement also includes an option to extend the link during the 2027-28 season.
Montreal will register him as a franchise player, a mechanism popularly known as the “Beckham Law,” which allows MLS clubs to have players excluded from the salary limit.
The operation marks a transcendental change in the trajectory of the Chilean, who had remained uninterruptedly in Europe since 2008.
“I am grateful to the club for the trust it has placed in me and I really want to put my experience at the service of the team so that we can achieve our goals and create unforgettable moments for our fans,” Sanchez said in the statement released by the club.
“I am here to give everything for the club and for this city,” he added.
The closing of an extensive European stage
Sanchez came to European football at just 20 years old, when he left River Plate to join Udinese in Italy. From that moment on, he built a career that took him to seven clubs in four different leagues.
In addition to Udinese and Sevilla, he defended the shirts of Barcelona, ??Arsenal, Manchester United, Olympique de Marseille and Inter Milan.
His journey included spells in the Italian Serie A, the English Premier League, the Spanish La Liga and the French Ligue 1, a rare combination among South American players of his generation.
During that cycle he won 17 official titles: three leagues, one Copa del Rey, two FA Cups, one Coppa Italia, one European Super Cup, two Italian Super Cups, three Spanish Super Cups, three Community Shields and one Club World Cup.
With Barcelona he shared a squad with Lionel Messi and was part of the team that won the League, the Copa del Rey, the Spanish Super Cup and the Club World Cup in 2012.
A new challenge in Canada
The sporting challenge you will find in Montreal is demanding. The Canadian team currently occupies the penultimate position in the Eastern Conference with 16 points in 18 games and is seven points away from the postseason zone.
Sanchez's arrival also occurs in a transition season for the MLS, which is working on adapting its calendar to that of the main European leagues.
With his incorporation, the club is betting on the international experience of the greatest recent leader in Chilean football to try to change the course of a complicated campaign.
Sanchez leaves behind 18 years of European football and opens a chapter in North America for the first time in his career, where he will seek to provide leadership and experience to a team in need of immediate results.
