Since the news broke of Lionel Messi’s extortionate contract at Barcelona, everyone seems to have had an opinion of the merits, or not, of the Argentinian’s worth.
Earning, allegedly, the most amount of money for a sportsman in history over a four-year period was always going to be polarising if it got into the public domain, but he’s not the only footballer to have odd clauses inserted into a deal in order to get it signed.
According to MARCA and cited by Football Espana, his former Barcelona colleague, Ronaldinho, was allowed to have two nights of partying per week as part of his Flamengo contract.
Another former colleague, Neymar, really hit the jackpot when signing with Paris Saint-Germain.
The report notes that not only was he paid a €375,000 bonus for clapping supporters at the end of matches, but he also acquired a butler, chauffeur and personal assistant as part of his move.
Boot deals are nothing new of course, though Betis must’ve been smarting when having to make 14 monthly payments of €114,428 to Rafael van der Vaart to ensure he didn’t wear red boots – the colour of Betis’ rival, Sevilla.
Football, eh?!