Neymar had a clause inserted into his Barcelona contract which a leading sports lawyer claims is the most “ludicrous” one he has seen during his career.
Having joined Barcelona from Santos in a deal worth £71.5m, Neymar arrived in Catalonia as a 21-year-old with a point to prove. After taking a few months to settle in at the La Liga side and crying in the dressing at half-time of one particular game against Athletic Bilbao, the Brazilian quickly developed into one of the best footballers in the world.
Alongside Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez, Neymar formed a crucial part of the revered MSN attacking line that dominated in the 2014/15 season, a season in which Barcelona won the La Liga, Champions League and Copa del Rey treble. But while he enjoyed 39 goals in 51 games that term on the pitch, he had plenty of time for fun off it, too.
Neymar had ‘ludicrous’ clause inserted in Barcelona contract
Daniel Geey is a leading sports lawyer and has been involved in deals as high-profile as Declan Rice’s £105m move from West Ham to Arsenal in 2023.
Appearing on The Overlap Fan Debate to discuss a wide range of different intricacies in the game, from contract strategies, negotiations between clubs and the Premier League’s PSRs, Geey also touched on “the most ludicrous clause” he has seen in a player’s contract following a question from Jamie Carragher.
“I can’t say too much due to confidentiality, just in case I get struck off as a lawyer,” Geey said.
“But the best one I saw was Neymar’s clause at Barcelona. When he was there, apparently he had a clause where, every month, he could have eight of his best mates come over from Brazil to have a party in Barcelona. I’d loved to have been able to draft that party clause.”
In fact, FourFourTwo experienced first-hand Neymar’s laissez-faire attitude in April 2015. Turning up nine hours late for an interview, Neymar had been enjoying a barbecue at his mansion in Castelldefels before eventually being persuaded by Nike high-ups to show his face.
That interview saw FourFourTwo introduced to Los Toiss – a controversial group of six (sometimes more) friends, one-time team-mates and fixers who exist as moons to service planet Neymar. Guillherme Pitta arranged Neymar’s parties and night-time actitivities.
Neymar isn’t the only Brazilian star at Barcelona who became notorious for their party lifestyle, with Ronaldinho’s antics well documented.
It does seem surprising that Barcelona would have agreed to such a clause in Neymar’s contract, especially considering the issues they encountered with Ronaldinho a few years’ beforehand. Now Neymar is back in Brazil with his boyhood side Santos, partying with his mates might become a little easier.
