For several months, the football world has been holding its breath in the face of the standoff between Kylian Mbappé, one of the brightest stars in the sport, and the management of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG). The crucial question of this sports saga revolves around the 24-year-old player’s contract: will he play an additional year with the team? If Kylian Mbappé does not agree to extend his contract, he exposes himself to a blank season, as reported by Le Monde on Thursday, August 10, jeopardizing his participation in major events such as Euro 2024 and the Paris Olympics.
The conflict stems from Mbappé’s refusal to activate an extension clause in his contract, which would allow him to stay at PSG until the 2024-2025 season. Far from being a simple sporting matter, this struggle has huge financial implications. If Mbappé refuses to extend and leaves PSG as a free agent in 2024, he will forgo a huge sum of nearly 200 million euros, according to Le Monde. Despite the tempting offer from the Parisian club, including a signing bonus of 60 million euros gross, a loyalty bonus of 55 million euros payable in two installments, and an annual remuneration of at least 75 million euros for the 2024-2025 season, revealed by our counterparts.
The potential non-renewal of Mbappé would mark the end of a fierce media battle. Mediapart revealed last fall the existence of a “digital army” paid by PSG to denigrate their player, while the club’s president, Nasser Al-Khelaïfi, threatened, and still threatens, not to allow Mbappé to play with the professional team this season if he does not extend. And the club has every interest in not allowing this, after the departure of its key players Lionel Messi and Sergio Ramos.
Because, according to PSG, Kylian Mbappé’s departure “would have drastic financial consequences, including layoffs.” The club is indeed concerned about its financial stability in the event of the player’s free departure in 2024, although it has already set aside 80 million euros based on the player’s third contract year option, and the decrease in the wage bill following Messi and Ramos’ departures should mitigate these concerns, according to our colleagues.
As the summer transfer market approaches its end, the Mbappé saga could still see new developments. The September 1 deadline is fast approaching, and PSG must submit its list of players for the Champions League to UEFA three days later. Mbappé’s absence in this list could have significant repercussions on the club’s campaign. Especially since speculations about a possible secret agreement between the player and Real Madrid are rife, although the latter has denied them.
