Free transfers in 2024: Kane, Rashford, Pulisic among stars - ESPN

One of the trickiest scenarios for a club is when a star player enters the last year of their contract. With the threat they might leave on a free transfer in 12 months' time, the leverage in negotiations moves toward the player and their agent.

Broadly speaking, a club is left with three choices: persuade the player to sign a new deal, play the high-risk strategy of keeping that player and hoping talks progress, or accept defeat and sound out the market to find a suitor — though any interested parties will often be able to negotiate a lower transfer fee because of the expiring contract.

As this season comes to an end, there are some world-class players who could face such a predicament soon. Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior, Arsenal's Bukayo Saka and Paris Saint-Germain's Marquinhos — as well as Rafael Leao after recent developments with AC Milan over his future — are more than likely to sign new deals in the coming weeks, while West Ham should exercise a one-year extension option in £100m-rated midfielder Declan Rice's contract until 2025. But there are still a host of top names who could be snapped up.

— Stream on ESPN+: FA Cup, LaLiga, more (U.S.)

The long-term future of the record-breaking Spurs and England centre-forward is arguably the most heavily anticipated decision in world football. Kane's next contract will carry him toward the tail end of his career, and he wants to ensure that he has some silverware when it finishes.

Whether he chooses to further cement his legendary status at Spurs, or succumb to the lure of Chelsea or Manchester United (both are reported to hold an interest, with prospects of a better financial deal if not necessarily trophies), or even move abroad to Bayern Munich or Real Madrid, he