Vinicius, Pedri, Fati: Who has the biggest release clause in football?

Andreas Christensen recently became a Barcelona player and has had a whopping £438 million release clause inserted into his contract.

It’s testament to how barmy the game has gone in recent years that, in order for a club to keep hold of their most prized assets, clubs feel the need to insert these unholy clauses into player’s contracts to ensure rivals won’t swoop in and steal their potential star.

I mean, Christensen’s release clause is worth nearly half a billion but it’s still not enough to get him into this list of football’s top 10 biggest release clauses.

10. Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid) – £598m

Real Madrid’s latest sensation, it’s understandable Los Blancos want to protect the rights to their 21-year-old star.

The Brazilian enjoyed a scintillating 2021 campaign, scoring the winning goal to clinch the Champions League final and he was even ranked as South America’s best footballer in a recent article we covered from FourFourTwo.

According to the Sun, his contract runs till 2026 and he takes home roughly £8.6 million per year.

=7. Brahim Diaz (Real Madrid) – £641m

As you’ll see from this list, Florentino Perez absolutely loves to make sure his players are untouchable by slapping enormous tags on their future potential.

With Diaz, things probably haven’t worked out as anticipated. He’s spent the last two seasons on loan at AC Milan and has flattered to deceive as of yet in his career.

Madrid will likely look to off-load the youngster and recoup the £16 million spent on him.

=7. Luka Modric (Real Madrid) – £641m

Modric just signed a one year contract extension at Madrid and, given his age, there is quite literally zero chance of anyone activating his release clause.

=7. Federico Valverde (Real Madrid) –