Benzema, Salah, but also Zaniolo: Players who had the Ballon d’Or clause in their contract

Player contracts can contain any bonuses, the same applies when negotiating transfer amounts between clubs. Once any conditions are met, the club can collect additional money or the player can be paid a bonus for meeting the agreed conditions. The most controversial clause, however, is the winning of the Ballon d’Or. Several players had this clause in their contract, was it unnecessary for some?

Anthony Martial

When the French winger transferred to Manchester United in 2015, Monaco just added a clause regarding the Ballon d’Or to their negotiations. If Martial could win it, the French outfit would cash in £7.2 million. The now 28-year-old striker has played 317 games for United, adding 90 goals and 47 assists, but has not come close to the Ballon d’Or. Moreover, he has been out of contract since the beginning of July.

Bruno Fernandes

Fernandes did not miss the Ballon d’Or clause either. However, Sporting Lisbon were much smarter about it, the Red Devils would pay €5 million every time he finished in the top three. The Portuguese is definitely one of the best midfielders in the world, unfortunately his Ballon d’Or hopes are diminishing with Manchester United’s horrendous results. However, in 237 games for the English club, he has a brilliant 79 goals and 67 assists.

Ángel di Maria

So far, it seems that only Manchester United include these clauses in their transfers. However, the list of United players ends with the Argentine. Di Mária arrived in 2014 for 75 million euros from Real Madrid, where he had the season of his life. The cursed number 7 brought him only 4 goals and 11 assists, so the Madrid outfit could forget about the £4 million bonus. Moreover, the Argentine changed team again after the season.

André Gomes

The Portuguese midfielder was considered one of the biggest talents around 2015. That’s also why Barcelona bought him from Valencia for 37 million euros. In the event of winning the Ballon d’Or, the Spanish club would collect another 15 million euros, but that would have to be a completely different story. The Portuguese has only 78 starts, 3 goals and 4 assists for the Catalans. He is now playing for Lille.

Nicolo Zaniolo

Probably the most bizarre player on this list. Nicolo Zaniolo has an undisclosed Ballon d’Or clause in his contract with Turkish side Galatasaray. He moved to Turkey in the winter of 2023 for €15 million and has only played 12 games there in which he has scored 5 goals and 1 assist. He has been on loan since last summer, first at Aston Villa and now at Atalanta.

Mohamed Salah

The Egyptian winger probably has the strangest clause. Because if he doesn’t win the Ballon d’Or in a Liverpool jersey and Barcelona or Real Madrid show interest, he could leave completely for free.

Yes, the Anfield club would let their gem go without any financial compensation. But at 32 years old, neither club is likely to reach for him and he will be able to add to his collection of 214 goals and 92 assists.

Karim Benzema

Now we come to the items that have been fulfilled. When Benzema transferred to Madrid in 2009, Lyon added a clause about paying 1 million euros to win the Ballon d’Or. After all, the French outfit received the million when Benzema seized the player’s most valuable trophy in 2021 after a great season. However, France are probably scratching their heads that they didn’t set a higher amount.

Neymar

The Brazilian prodigy was the hottest commodity on the market in 2013. The battle for him was eventually won by Barcelona, who paid €88 million to Santos. The Brazilian team sensed a lot of potential in their offspring, hence the £5 million clause every time the Brazilian finishes in the top three. It didn’t take long and in 2015 it actually happened, with Neymar sitting on the podium with both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Unfortunately for him, it was the last time in his career.

Source: Transfermarkt