Release clauses have never been as popular as they became on Tuesday, when Lionel Messi delivered his intention to leave Barcelona.
When Messi informed his longtime club of his decision, the entire footballing world became abuzz with speculation on where he'd end up, and how he'd get there. As far as Barca is concerned, Messi is still under contract until the end of the upcoming season — and there's a hefty release clause that keeps him that way.
But there's another clause in his deal, signed back in 2017, that allows the Argentine to walk away without Barca seeing a single cent in return. The question is whether that clause is valid.
So what's the deal with Messi's release clauses and what options are available to him, Barca and potential suitors? Let's find out.
Buyout clause in Messi's Barcelona contract
In the wake of Neymar's earth-shattering €222 million buyout by Paris Saint-Germain three years ago, Barcelona was understandably eager to lock up the best player in club history. Messi was inked to a four-year contract extension in November 2017 that included a previously unheard of €700 million buyout clause.
Put simply: If a PSG or Manchester CIty were intent on purchasing Messi's services, they'd have to negotiate a transfer fee with Barca or shell out the colossal €700 million figure.
Obviously, no club in the world would actually consider paying the €700 million buyout fee even for one of soccer's GOATs, so from Barca's point of view, any advances on Messi would have to go through the Catalan club.
The buyout clause still exists, and could still theoretically be activated, but if a team was going to do so it likely would've been done by now.
Termination clause in Messi's Barcelona contract
This is the one that's being talked about this week, as Messi has a unilateral clause included in his contract that allows him to walk away from Barcelona without the club receiving any compensation. While it may seem crazy that Barca would include such an easy out for a generational player, keep in mind that at the time Messi was happy with the prospect of remaining at Camp Nou long term, and there was no indication that he'd ever actually consider using it.
Either way, the clause exists, and it's the one Messi's team is hoping to use to force his exit from the club after nearly two decades.
Where it gets tricky is — as with any legal contract — in the wording. It has been widely reported that Messi would've had to inform Barca by the end of May if he intended to activate his termination clause. Under normal circumstances, Barcelona's 2019-20 season would've ended by mid-May at the earliest, but the coronavirus pandemic put the entire sporting world on hold for months. La Liga and the UEFA Champions League both extended well past May, and Messi's contention is that since the season extended then so did the window for him to activate the termination clause.
With Barca's 8-2 humiliation in the Champions League quarterfinal happening Aug. 14, Messi waited 11 days before sending the fateful fax to Barca's office. Had he waited the same amount of time in a normal year, he would've easily cleared the May 31 deadline.
Barcelona said it intends to hold Messi to the May deadline, so legal action could be the next step, as the club would no doubt want financial compensation if its talisman were to leave.
Messi transfer — with payment to Barcelona
The option that has been talked about the least, but is the most likely to happen, is a regular transfer with a fee attached.
Let's face it, if Barca is preparing to take Messi to court to uphold a contract because the superstar wants to leave, that means the relationship between the club and player is already damaged.
Given that he has just one full season left on his current deal, it makes the most sense if a clean break were made where Messi joins another club while Barca collects something in return. Any legal proceedings could drag on, and a Messi holdout would do more damage to a Barca side that is already in disarray.
The smartest course of action would be for Barca to negotiate with Messi's preferred next club and arrive at a transfer fee — that would still likely be well over €100 million! — in order to preserve the dignity of all sides.