There was a time, not so long ago, when the end of a contract embodied a footballer’s ultimate nightmare. To approach it was to risk seeing his career self-destruct in the event of major injuries or major underperformance. It was necessary to anticipate, to spare the mattresses as thick as possible to cushion the risks. Today, the end of the contract is an opportunity. More than that, an objective even if it concerns only a part of the players: the most talented. A phenomenon that continues to grow. For several years, the wave has grown.
Main players who left at the end of the contract:
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- June 2019: Rabiot, Godin, Herrera, Filipe Luis.
- June 2020: Eriksen, Cavani, Thiago Silva, Meunier, Matuidi, David Silva.
- June 2021: Messi, Ramos, Alaba, Donnarumma, Aguero, Depay, Wijnaldum, Suarez, Thauvin, Boateng, Eric Garcia.
- June 2022: Mbappé, Pogba, Dembélé, Lloris, Dybala, Rüdiger, Kessié, Lacazette, Tolisso, Christensen, Insigne, Kamara, Di Maria.
Clubs that can no longer fuel inflation
The real novelty is that the phenomenon is now affecting the best players and the best clubs in the world. Thirty, twenty and even ten years ago, it was impossible to imagine the best players in the world changing clubs for free. Zinedine Zidane, Thierry Henry, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Shevchenko: at their peak, these players always cost a lot of money in transfer fees. How to explain this sudden turnaround? First because even the biggest clubs today can no longer afford a player of 150 million euros. This is one of the effects of the Covid pandemic which has dried up finances. Juventus Turin, Real Madrid or FC Barcelona, to name a few, no longer have the means to offer nine-figure transfer transactions or to upgrade their best player by offering them contracts on the rise.
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“If we see so many players at the end of their contract today, it is above all because two years ago, at the time of the Covid, discussions on extensions were frozen, notes David Wantier, responsible for recruiting the Greens until March 2020. And the wages distributed yesterday are no longer in line with the reality of the market.” “Today, the means of the clubs can no longer support what the great players are demanding, continues Bruno Satin, sports agent. They can no longer fuel the perpetual inflation and the demands of the big stars are falling apart. This is why many of them are coming to the end of their lease.“The most striking example remains Lionel Messi, whom Barça had to bring himself to release into the wild for lack of funds. The equation was the same for Sergio Ramos at Real Madrid.
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If Kylian Mbappé wants to join Real Madrid, as was the case last summer, he knows he must wisely wait to be free because no club can meet the demands of PSG. He also found that PSG never sells its best players even if they want to leave (Marquinhos, Verratti or Thiago Silva). To have the choice, to build a career, the great players must go to the end of their commitment. Here are several transfer window that Paul Pogba wants to get out of the Mancunian quagmire. But Manchester United, one of the three richest clubs in the world, doesn’t really need cash and has never opened the door for it. This summer, how many great players have left a great club, including one serious contender for the final victory in the Champions League, for another without being free? Apart from Raphaël Varane (from Real Madrid to Manchester United), none. Today, great players go to the end of their contract first and foremost because they want to become masters of their own destiny and choose the career they want.
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It is also a clever way to be offered a salary and a revalued bonus. Since it is not necessary to pay transfer compensation, since the competition is tough on a free player, the club agrees to offer inflated fees accompanied by a nice welcome check. For Kylian Mbappé, the Spanish press speaks of a 40 million euro signing bonus for example. Mino Raiola, agent of Donnarumma who arrived free in Paris this summer and doubled his salary, is a specialist in this kind of exercise and knows how to spoil himself and his player in this kind of juicy operations. Three of his men (Xavi Simons, Alessio Romagnoli, Paul Pogba) are at the end of their contract in June, no coincidence. Today, the great player has reversed the balance of power and it is he who dictates his law to the market. Even if David Wantier specifies: “Until two years from the end of the contract, it is the club that is in a strong position. It is he who decides to extend or sell. If the sports policy is not clear, if the club hesitates and waits then yes, the balance of power is reversed.“
The new generation wants to be on top of the system
Even an Ousmane Dembélé, with a highly questionable performance since arriving at Barcelona, has mastered his schedule to get what he wants. Barça faces salary claims (20 million euros in salary, 30 million signing bonus) totally out of step with what he offers on the ground. “But you can always find pigeon clubs“, notes Bruno Satin. This is the case of PSG which can afford to offer insane salaries, as this summer to Wijnaldum, Ramos, Hakimi, Donnarumma or Messi, despite common sense. Paris prefers to concentrate talents rather than to leave the opportunity to its European adversaries to strengthen themselves.
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A last radical evolution explains this strong tendency of the end of contract: the personality of the new generation. Laurent Schmitt, sports agent, explains: “Every day, I hear players say: ‘I know what I’m worth, I believe in myself, I take responsibility’ and the end of the contract is no longer a problem but an opportunity. Young players know what they want and have real self-confidence. They have a very specific career plan. Clubs are signing younger and younger players and, in France, the first pro contract cannot exceed three years. So we have a whole generation who learned to be free very early on“Some of them have even built their careers by chaining free clubs like Zinedine Ferhat, whose contract in Nîmes ends in June.”This new generation wants to be above the systemand she assumes her choices by taking risky but courageous postures“, summarizes Laurent Schmitt.
The end of the contract is not always chosen, some (the international Clément Grenier and Eliaquim Mangala for example) remain on the floor and the vast majority fear it. But for the most talented part of professional players, it has become a relevant option or even an ambition and the big clubs can only see the damage. The anguish has changed sides.
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