Barcelona, a club not used to losing star players, accepted the largest transfer fee of all-time as Paris Saint-Germain funded the release clause for Brazilian striker Neymar on Thursday. The $263,480,000 fee didn’t just shatter the old record, it eviscerated it, more than doubling the $117.6 million Manchester United paid for Paul Pogba.
I don't know what will become of Portsmouth following its acquisition by former Disney CEO Michael Eisner, but I can't help but hope it turns out exactly like this:
If you thought fidget spinners were only for hyperactive tweens and squirmy corporate adults, then think again.
The most annoying and amusing toy in the world just received the stamp of approval from Ronaldinho. The Brazilian legend recently released his own line of fidget spinners, available in silver, gold and black. The stylish gadget’s piéce de résistance is the emblazoned “Ronaldinho” signature.
Back in 2010, MLS signed an eight-year deal with Adidas worth $200 million. It was seen as a watershed moment for the league, signed just years after an eight-year contract with ESPN.
In 2014, the broadcast deal for MLS changed dramatically when ESPN, Fox Sports and Univision signed new agreements totaling around $90 million per-season, five times more than the previous deal.
There is a myth that jersey sales can help recuperate the transfer fee for a new player, that a player’s popularity can overcome a high asking price for a player. The fact is, Neymar’s $263 million release clause to leave Barcelona for Paris Saint-Germain will hardly be dented by the French club selling a few more jerseys.
Let’s take a look at some numbers.
Meet Amine Harit, a French U-20 attacking midfielder who just arrived at Schalke 04 via Nantes for $9.5 million. He's not a global sponsor for Nike, Gillette, Panasonic or Beats by Dre, he's never had his own custom Air Jordan sneakers or been featured on the cover of Pro Evolution Soccer, but he remains one of the brightest attacking talents in world football today.
So, Neymar to PSG is really heating up now. After Barcelona admitted Neymar said he wanted to leave and Messi said goodbye on Instagram, the Brazilian forward is reportedly in Porto to undergo a medical. The big story right now (read: for like the next 15 minutes until something else insane happens) is Neymar's PSG contract, which, according to Sky Sports, is a whopper.
This morning Barcelona announced that Neymar had announced to them his intention to leave the club, presumably for Paris Saint-Germain. Barcelona also announced that they informed Neymar his release clause, a cool 263.2 million, would still have to be met.
PSG have yet to actually meet this release clause, which would terminate Neymar's contract with Barcelona and allow him to sign a new one with PSG, but they certainly have the means. Messi has already said goodbye.
Cue a thousand corny jokes about swiping right on transfers and Manchester United fans finally getting a decent match: Tinder has reportedly offered a deal to become Manchester United’s sleeve sponsor.
Add Ronaldinho's name to the list of current and former teammates who have gone on record about Neymar's rumored transfer to PSG.
In the wake of increasing chatter about Neymar's potential move to Paris Saint-Germain, Ronaldinho gave Neymar some advice that's probably easier to say than follow when faced with a potentially record-breaking deal of $260 million to leave Barcelona.