Lamine Yamal signs Barcelona contract extension with billion dollar release clause

Barcelona have tied down young prospect Lamine Yamal with a three-year contract extension, with plans in place to offer him improved terms when he turns 18.

The club have announced that the new deal will keep him at the club until 30 June 2026. Yamal’s new contract has a buyout clause set at €1 billion ($1.05bn).

The 16-year-old winger has broken into the first team this season and become a frequent starter for the Spanish champions. Xavi Hernandez named Yamal in the team ahead of Ferran Torres for last weekend’s game against Sevilla and he was instrumental in setting up the only goal of the game.

Yamal made his Barcelona debut aged just 15 years, nine months and 16 days and he is the youngest person to play for and to score for the Spanish national team.

Why is Lamine Yamal’s release clause so high?

In a bid to protect their most valuable young players, in recent years Barcelona have often included exorbitant release clauses in their contracts. These clauses, also known as buyout clauses, are a pre-agreed transfer amount for which the club has to allow the player to leave if a bid if tabled.

Yamal joins fellow Barcelona starlets Pedri and Gavi in receiving a ten-figure release clause in his first professional deal.

These contracted amount are typically extremely high to ward of interest from rival clubs, but that does not always work. In 2017 Barcelona lost Neymar to Paris Saint-Germain after the French club tabled a world record €222 million bid for the Brazilian.

Barcelona will hope that the €1 billion price tag on Yamal will prevent a repeat of that infamous transfer.