Football may not be to everyone’s taste, but money, precisely £198 million basic fee – converted to naira, ₦95 billion – is a language understandable to the layman.
Wetin the guy wan do with that kind money? The guy is 25 year old Brazillian footballer, Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior.
He will receive a transfer fee of £198 million broken down to around £40 million a year over 5 years. This is only an initial fee to be paid by his new club French football club Paris Saint-Germain. It excludes an estimated wage of £26.8 million a year over the same period.
His dad, Neymar Snr, who is also his agent is expected to pocket an estimated £19.7 million in fees. That’s almost £352 million (₦170 billion) under one household – minus other lucrative deals like adverts.
It is thought that Neymar’s fees is based on his current worth plus future expectations, i.e:
- The possibility of selling lots of ‘Neymar’ football shirts due to popularity
- The hope that he will assist the team to reach at least semi-final matches. According to the BBC, last year’s Champions League semi finalists received £6.7million, finalists got £9.9 million plus an extra £5.6 for the winners
- His name and image could help to sell season tickets and expensive hospitality packages based at their stadium
- And potentially if the consequences dig a hole in investors pockets, then other less worthy players will sold
Digging a hole is hardly foreseeable given PSG is owned by the Gulf state of Qatar via its Oryx Qatar Sports Investments fund, and Neymar is said (arguably) to be the best player in the world, next to Christiano Ronaldo.
Put this way, looking at Neymar’s legitmate hard work next to former Petroleum Minister, Dieziani Alison-Madueke’s alleged fraud of $90 billion – ₦33 trillion, his legitimate pay could be a forgiveable drop in the ocean.
