- Spanish law states clubs must include a release clause in all player contracts
- The forward has made almost 200 appearances for Madrid since joining in 2019
- Big debates on Man United, Chelsea and Arsenal on It’s All Kicking Off podcast
Real Madrid forward Rodrygo has put pen to paper on a new contract that includes a £1billion release clause.
The 22-year-old’s new deal will ensure he stays at the club until 2028 having joined in 2019 from Santos in his home country of Brazil, since going onto make nearly 200 appearances in all competitions.
He’s scored 39 goals in that time and is continuing to progress with the club, winning the Champions League and two LaLiga titles during his stay.
All contracts in Spanish football include a release clause, meaning clubs could in theory buy a player out of their deal without the club stepping in to prevent it from happening.
That will be much harder then perhaps normal with Rodrygo, however, with the £1billion release clause, reported by Sergio Quirante, over five times the current record transfer fee for any player.
Real Madrid forward Rodryo has signed a new contract with the Spanish club running through until 2028
The 22-year-old has made nearly 200 appearances since joining the club in 2019, winning a number of major trophies along the way
A regular for Brazil, Rodrygo has 18 caps for his country and travelled with his nation for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
He became the youngest player to score a Champions League hat-trick in the 2019/20 Champions League, netting three times against Galatasaray in a 6-0 win at the age of 18 years and 301 days.
He’s also won the Copa del Rey, the European Super Cup and the Club World Cup during his time in Spain and will have his eye on more accolades throughout the duration of his new deal.
The forward is the second Madrid player to sign a new deal this week, with his club and international team-mate, Vinicius Jr, securing a new contract which will run until 2027.
He is a key player of the Madrid team that is currently top of LaLiga and looking to win the title back from Barcelona
Neymar is an example of how release clauses – which are essential – can cost clubs their players leaving
Rodrygo is the second player to agree a new contract with Madrid this week, with Vinicius Jr also signing a new deal
In Spain, a footballer has the same legal right as any other worker to leave for a ‘better’ job. The clause can therefore then be paid by the employee themselves of the club they are looking or set to join.
The law states that the release clause should be proportional to the salary of the player. Though Rodrygo’s salary has not been disclosed, it would be fair to assume it’s pretty hefty given the size of his release clause.
There have been several examples of release clauses costing clubs before, including when Barcelona reluctantly had to let Neymar join PSG for nearly £200million in in 2017 and when Luis Figo swapped Barcelona for Real Madrid in 2000.
Clubs have, in recent years, tried to make the clauses as high as possible to prevent them from losing their players without their direct say-so in any future approaches or moves.
