Real Madrid have decided to sell Kylian Mbappe in the latest move in contract negotiations
Real Madrid traditionally retain all image rights of their players when they sign for the club, but as is increasingly the case, Kylian Mbappe is a unique case. The French striker looks set to join Los Blancos this summer after rejecting a move on three previous occasions, and it looks like he will be learning about the last major detail in his contract talks.
It was previously reported that Mbappe he has already signed an agreement with Real Madrid, and that he has a verbal agreement, but the consensus seems that the last details have been smoothed out. Mbappe's presence at the Paris Olympics and his image rights were mentioned as those details.
Now AS Diary refer to a report from El Chiringuito that Real Madrid agreed to Mbappe having 80% of his image rights, in addition to his annual salary of 15 million euros and a major signing bonus that some outlets have put up to 150 million euros. Mbappe currently earns €20 million a year from advertising, and that figure is only set to increase with his arrival at Real Madrid.
The insistence of Mbappe's agreement on image rights was first described as a landmark, as it could spark a trend of footballers negotiating for themselves. It is already a battle that he had with the French Football Federation, but as the outlet based in Madrid points out, Erling Haaland has all his image rights, and Endrick Felipe, who has not yet made his debut in Europe, will retain 50%.
It looks like the deal for Mbappe will be signed and sealed in no time, as this is thought to be the major sticking point that needs to be agreed. While Real Madrid could try to impose their will with Mbappe in terms of the Olympics – his absence would probably cause them to lose a few million in revenue from their pre-season tour – the player made it clear that it is a of his ambitions. Refusing to let him go could spark early tension, and Los Blancos will be wary of Mbappe's buzz to finally be on top of what he's doing on the pitch.
