Lionel Messi’s Obscene Contract

Daysleeper

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I was just thinking about how before Messi you were built around one incredible player as well. It's gonna be odd seeing a Barca team sheet and it not being obvious who the biggest threat is.
true but oddly enough our biggest issue has been too over reliant on one player. Even the second leg against Liverpool Messi created every single chance we had. Look at Ronaldo when he doesn’t have a good second option for games where he has a rough time in CL. He’s the greatest cl player ever and yet can’t get past quarter finals because you don’t have a bale, Ramos, Benzema or Marcelo scoring a goal now and again to offset the pressure. Barcelona had multiple years in CL where own goal was the second highest scorer. At least with Koeman there’s a lot more balance. But we also need to move away from these galacticos signings and develop the excellent youth that have been coming through
 

Tallis

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What happens with Barca after Messi will be so interesting :drool:
They have some very good talent coming through in Pedri, Fati, De Jong, Dest, Trincao and others. If they can survive the financial Armageddon, I think they will be fine although don’t think they will dominate to the extent they did before.
 

Sean_RedDevil

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They have some very good talent coming through in Pedri, Fati, De Jong, Dest, Trincao and others. If they can survive the financial Armageddon, I think they will be fine although don’t think they will dominate to the extent they did before.
They have currently fantastic players in the squad and top players want of course move to Barca in the future too but to lose the player for their most answers on the pitch since 12-13 years and must somehow "survive the financial Armageddon" is just a situation for endless sleepless nights.
 

CannonBalls

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Messi still has 2-3 years left. Also he has made obscene amounts of money. Might aswell buy a Spanish club and play for them now. As anyway many are saying barca is what barca is today because of him. Just do this and you are set for life which i think he already is.

Btw i feel there is nothing wrong in earning or even asking for as much as he did. If he is earning that and not performing then thats his problem.
 

CG1010

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Its funny that the world is littered with several billionaires are able to earn much more than this just through earning returns on capital they inherited from older generations. But we are outraging for a player who has earned it by being possibly the best ever to play football with a short career span. I don't see what Messi has done wrong besides bargaining to extract the maximum value out of his footballing gifts and hard work.

Of course the club may have messed it by giving in to such a long contract. They should have let Messi go, no reason to keep hold of a player by paying through the roof.
 

OmarUnited4ever

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If the contract is true, then that's mind boggling amount!! and now players and agents (especially the elite players who's clubs are desperate to keep like Mane & Salah for Liverpool or KDB for City) will push for much higher salaries during contract renewals, citing Messi's contract, of course no club in their right mind will sanction anything close to Messi's money for any player (Barcelona did it because "it's Messi" perhaps), we will hear the players and agents demanding something like 400K a week which is only a 1/5 of Messi's money!!

Neymar's transfer fee opened the door to transfers exceeding the 80M as a norm (before Neymar, only Ronaldo, Bale & Pogba were sold for more than 80M pounds, post Neymar, we have Mbappe, Dembele, Greizman, Joao Felix, Hazard & Maguire went for 80M or more since 2017).

So now, the leak is problematic to clubs, players and agents might start demanding much more or threaten to leave.
 

RedRonaldo

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The World's Highest-Paid Athletes 2020 (forbes.com) -

This would be give or take correct, given 100m of Messi's was a sign on clause. So that leaves you circa 100m per year, though they may be a little off due to intangibles.

It was also reported wildly that Ronaldo, not Messi, was the first billionaire from football, soon followed by Messi.
Ronaldo earn more from endorsement though. For example, it’s reported he earn 39m pounds from Instagram alone every year. Think about all the other earnings he got from his brand, image rights and adverts etc. The earnings he got from endorsement are easily higher than his wage in Juventus.
 
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RedRonaldo

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Would you have 1 Messi for 550m for 4 years, or 10 Bruno for less amount?
 

RedRonaldo

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Barcelona before messi 1 champions league and a team know only because of the players they had wich didnt deliver much -Cruyff, Maradona, Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho-
Barcelona with Messi 4 mor champions league and one of the most popular temams in the world


btw, Sport Magazine said that because of messi, Barcelona made, after paying his wages over one hundred millions euros a year

not only selling shirts, or selling the publicity, but also every summer game pays 50 percent less if messi is not playing

https://www.sport.es/es/noticias/barca/messi-genera-cuesta-11489183
Again people are giving too much credits to Messi winning 08-09 CL, where he hasn’t feature at all in nearly 95% of games in knockout stages. It was basically won by peak Ronaldinho and Eto’o, a very young Messi was sitting at bench or at his home watching for majority for time.
 

city-puma

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If the contract is true, then that's mind boggling amount!! and now players and agents (especially the elite players who's clubs are desperate to keep like Mane & Salah for Liverpool or KDB for City) will push for much higher salaries during contract renewals, citing Messi's contract, of course no club in their right mind will sanction anything close to Messi's money for any player (Barcelona did it because "it's Messi" perhaps), we will hear the players and agents demanding something like 400K a week which is only a 1/5 of Messi's money!!

Neymar's transfer fee opened the door to transfers exceeding the 80M as a norm (before Neymar, only Ronaldo, Bale & Pogba were sold for more than 80M pounds, post Neymar, we have Mbappe, Dembele, Greizman, Joao Felix, Hazard & Maguire went for 80M or more since 2017).

So now, the leak is problematic to clubs, players and agents might start demanding much more or threaten to leave.
The leak definitely has the broader impact and people will rightly ask again why psg has not been punished for what they did. They disrupted the world football transfer market so much. It not only affects the other top tier clubs but also the second tier clubs. It’s the free market business compete with sovereign wealth who plays in the free market.
It’s shocking that Messi wanted to leave (abandon) Barca even though he earns so much and the club needs rebuild.
 

Seto007

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The First Billionaire Footballer. Ronaldo must be so jealous.. Ronaldo will need to go to the MLS to earn these sorts or numbers

can you imagine if you had Messi's talent with Ronaldo's looks!? That would be the Holy Grail if we ever find a footballer like that one day.
 

RedRonaldo

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I'd fecking throw him under the bus as well given how much shit he's talked for the last 12 months. This will shred his legacy in alot of barca fans eyes.
Well he really talk too much shite of the club who is paying him 550m over past 4 years and in verge of bankruptcy, partly because of him. I am not really sure if fans would be in full support of him after this.
 

adexkola

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Again people are giving too much credits to Messi winning 08-09 CL, where he hasn’t feature at all in nearly 95% of games in knockout stages. It was basically won by peak Ronaldinho and Eto’o, a very young Messi was sitting at bench or at his home watching for majority for time.
You mean 05-06 surely.
 

city-puma

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Well he really talk too much shite of the club who is paying him 550m over past 4 years and in verge of bankruptcy, partly because of him. I am not really sure if fans would be in full support of him after this.
Believe me. A big portion of his fans will continue supporting him no matter what.
 

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Well he really talk too much shite of the club who is paying him 550m over past 4 years and in verge of bankruptcy, partly because of him. I am not really sure if fans would be in full support of him after this.
Many will. Especially the international fanbase is full of Messi FC guys. They have literally spent a decade singing praises of Messi and fighting anyone, anywhere who says anything slightly negative about him
 

RedRonaldo

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Many will. Especially the international fanbase is full of Messi FC guys. They have literally spent a decade singing praises of Messi and fighting anyone, anywhere who says anything slightly negative about him
Sure for footballing reasons he surely deserve all the praise and support. But outside of it, he is acting way too big than everything else. I can’t understand anyone would think of badmouthing his club who are paying him 550m in past 4 years. It’s by far the biggest contract in sports ever.
 

RedDevil@84

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It’s shocking that Messi wanted to leave (abandon) Barca even though he earns so much and the club needs rebuild.
Seemed like empty threat at that time. It was obvious that it was pressure tactic to get the board to leave. In other words, abuse of his position of power at the club. One could argue it was the right pressure tactic, because the board was crap, but still it was abuse of power.
Also, it doesn't bode well, that he has a major part in Barca's financial situation
 

city-puma

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Seemed like empty threat at that time. It was obvious that it was pressure tactic to get the board to leave. In other words, abuse of his position of power at the club. One could argue it was the right pressure tactic, because the board was crap, but still it was abuse of power.
Also, it doesn't bode well, that he has a major part in Barca's financial situation
Maybe it’s the case. I don’t know much.
Someone said it’s equivalent to a quarter of Barca’s revenue. I don’t know if it’s accurate. If true, he really needs to be the one to be abandoned no matter what the reason is for what he spoke since that CL disaster.
 

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this is an insanely moronic take. The Baird having pitiful signings with bad contracts since neymar left has far more to do with their financial woes than Messi.

Tons of dumb takes in this topic
I think you're underestimating the snow ball effect. If Messi is entitled for 2m a week then someone like Griezmann would think that he deserves at least 800k. Meanwhile clubs would perceive that Barcelona are loaded and would expect their pound of flesh as well.

Barcelona made the mistake to build their entire marketing strategy around one player ie Messi. That means that Messi became bigger then the club, something that Lionel fully capitalized. As Sacchi used to say everything team has its cycle and once that cycle ends players should leave irrespective of how good they are. That's because they either become too complacent or too greedy. That's something Sir Alex believed in as well

I am not saying that giving ridiculous salaries to Messi was Barcelona's only mistake. In fact I see it as yet another example of Barca's reckless attitude in terms of everything related to money. However let's be honest here. That salary looks more like extorsion money then a contract between a loyal homegrown talent and his beloved club.
 
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Gehrman

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Same fam. I'd be fascinated to know what his career would've been like without the HGH (also with the hypothetical stipulation that he didn't need it).
He would have a been a "Small person". Hormone replacement therapy doesnt give you any advantage, ýou are just ingesting what you are naturally unable to produce.
 

dinostar77

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First salvo by Barcelona in preparing the fans for Messi to leave this summer. Good excuse, he's done so much for Barcelona but we cant afford to keep him at the club never mind negotiate a new contract. Our financial woes will be easied if Messi leaves. Implying that Messi contract was the issue for financial problems not years of mismanagement and woeful transfers.
 

InspiRED

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I am not saying it's right, those wage demands are disgusting and 113m just for 'accepting' the contract, well i guess that will cover the paperwork costs :lol: But no-one forced Barca to give him that contract. They should have told him to feck off.
 

11101

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What happens with Barca after Messi will be so interesting :drool:
I think they will make our transition after Ferguson look seamless. It was always going to be difficult and they have made a complete mess of the replacements so far, but nobody realised the extent to which he had been crippling them financially too. Every decision is based around keeping him happy rather than preparing for the future.
 

rron10

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I think you're underestimating the snow ball effect. If Messi is entitled for 2m a week then someone like Griezmann would think that he deserves at least 800k. Meanwhile clubs would perceive that Barcelona are loaded and would expect their pound of flesh as well.

Barcelona made the mistake to build their entire marketing strategy around one player ie Messi. That means that Messi became bigger then the club, something that Lionel fully capitalized. As Sacchi used to say everything team has its cycle and once that cycle ends players should leave irrespective of how good they are. That's because they either become too complacent or too greedy. That's something Sir Alex believed in as well

I am not saying that giving ridiculous salaries to Messi was Barcelona's only mistake. In fact I see it as yet another example of Barca's reckless attitude in terms of everything related to money. However let's be honest here. That salary looks more like extorsion money then a contract between a loyal homegrown talent and his beloved club.
I agree with that.

Messi milked as much money from the club as possible and the club was afraid to let him go sooner, because:
A. The image of the club would have been stained for losing the best player in their history (probably in the history of football), especially after losing Neymar without wanting it.
B. The fear of not winning any trophies without Messi(which has already happened last year and can surely happen this year also).
C. The fans would have become maddened if they saw their icon leave.

Only a good structural and healthy organisation could of lived through losing a player of that caliber sooner. Having a long serving trusted manager would have helped but Barca never had that and probably never will.
 

Cal?

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true but oddly enough our biggest issue has been too over reliant on one player. Even the second leg against Liverpool Messi created every single chance we had. Look at Ronaldo when he doesn’t have a good second option for games where he has a rough time in CL. He’s the greatest cl player ever and yet can’t get past quarter finals because you don’t have a bale, Ramos, Benzema or Marcelo scoring a goal now and again to offset the pressure. Barcelona had multiple years in CL where own goal was the second highest scorer. At least with Koeman there’s a lot more balance. But we also need to move away from these galacticos signings and develop the excellent youth that have been coming through
Messi the greatest CL player ever? :lol:
 

cyberman

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true but oddly enough our biggest issue has been too over reliant on one player. Even the second leg against Liverpool Messi created every single chance we had. Look at Ronaldo when he doesn’t have a good second option for games where he has a rough time in CL. He’s the greatest cl player ever and yet can’t get past quarter finals because you don’t have a bale, Ramos, Benzema or Marcelo scoring a goal now and again to offset the pressure. Barcelona had multiple years in CL where own goal was the second highest scorer. At least with Koeman there’s a lot more balance. But we also need to move away from these galacticos signings and develop the excellent youth that have been coming through
Ronaldo still finds ways to score in CL games? You cant blame Ronaldo for only scoring 2 when they need 3 to qualify.
Thats absurd.
 

Pretzels81

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First salvo by Barcelona in preparing the fans for Messi to leave this summer. Good excuse, he's done so much for Barcelona but we cant afford to keep him at the club never mind negotiate a new contract. Our financial woes will be easied if Messi leaves. Implying that Messi contract was the issue for financial problems not years of mismanagement and woeful transfers.
But it's true, isn't? Only PsG and City could pay his current salary, and we all know why. That or some Chinese club.
 

Bole Top

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crazy contract, but on the other hand he is once in a lifetime player. if anyone was going to get offered such deal, it's him. it's not his fault that Barca kept giving crazy contracts to others as well.
 

hubbuh

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It's funny that people are absolving Messi of absolutely any personal responsibility in regards to the enormity of his contract. The normalisation of greed and selfishness with money in society has desensitised us to the point that basically anything is fair game. CEO's giving themselves £400 million bonuses, footballers demanding half a billion for a few years work. The world has gone fecking mad!
 

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It's funny that people are absolving Messi of absolutely any personal responsibility in regards to the enormity of his contract. The normalisation of greed and selfishness with money in society has desensitised us to the point that basically anything is fair game. CEO's giving themselves £400 million bonuses, footballers demanding half a billion for a few years work. The world has gone fecking mad!
Half a billion is over the duration of his entire contract, not a single season.

If the club cannot make money off of the image of having Messi on and off the field, its on them, not Messi himself. They get eyeballs from people around the world, fans, jersey sales and commercial partnerships owing to having Messi on their team alone so he has every right to demand fair compensation for his value. Barcelona have been a terribly run club all decade long and its not down to Messi's wages.
 

Marcosdeto

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Again people are giving too much credits to Messi winning 08-09 CL, where he hasn’t feature at all in nearly 95% of games in knockout stages. It was basically won by peak Ronaldinho and Eto’o, a very young Messi was sitting at bench or at his home watching for majority for time.
He played 6 games, scored one goal and gave 2 assists. He was injured in the game against chelsea.

he recieved a CL medal

So at 19 he achieved more than what cruyff, maradona, riquelme, rivaldo and so many record earning players ever did in barcelona

But of course, you decide to hate messi
 

Gehrman

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It's funny that people are absolving Messi of absolutely any personal responsibility in regards to the enormity of his contract. The normalisation of greed and selfishness with money in society has desensitised us to the point that basically anything is fair game. CEO's giving themselves £400 million bonuses, footballers demanding half a billion for a few years work. The world has gone fecking mad!
What I hate the most is how this screws over the common Barcalona footballer. I'd bet his team mates are barely able to pay rent while he's hoarding all the wealth.
 

Marcosdeto

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It's funny that people are absolving Messi of absolutely any personal responsibility in regards to the enormity of his contract. The normalisation of greed and selfishness with money in society has desensitised us to the point that basically anything is fair game. CEO's giving themselves £400 million bonuses, footballers demanding half a billion for a few years work. The world has gone fecking mad!
I find it more funny that people are condemning him for earning money