Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free
Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.
Kylian Mbappé has told Paris Saint-Germain that he intends to leave the Qatar-owned French champions this summer, according to two people close to the club, as one of the world’s most marketable football stars prepares for the next phase of a glittering career.
Mbappé, who helped France to World Cup victory in 2018 and a runners-up medal four years later, would be the latest star to leave the French club, following the departures of Argentina’s Lionel Messi and Brazilian Neymar last summer. The 25-year-old signed for PSG from AS Monaco for roughly €180mn almost seven years ago.
The striker, who grew up in a poor suburb of Paris, is one of a handful of players who makes headlines beyond his sport. When Mbappé previously flirted with joining Real Madrid, French President Emmanuel Macron personally intervened to convince him to stay.
PSG declined to comment. A representative for Mbappé did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The club is preparing to recruit reinforcements to replace Mbappé, the people said, as it aims to shift from a star-driven approach to one emphasising collective effort. He costs PSG roughly €200mn a year in wages, bonuses, taxes and social charges.
The terms of his exit are yet to be determined. Real Madrid has been repeatedly linked to signing Mbappé, who was also the subject of a €300mn bid from Saudi football club Al Hilal last year.
His looming departure comes at a critical time for PSG, which was valued at more than €4bn when US investment firm Arctos Partners agreed to buy up to 12.5 per cent of the club late last year. It is also seeking a new home stadium after failing to convince Anne Hidalgo, the mayor of Paris, to sell it the Parc des Princes, which it rents from Paris City Council.
His departure will also be a blow to Ligue 1, by potentially denting the value of broadcast rights for France’s top football league just as negotiations are under way for the 2024 to 2029 period. Private equity firm CVC invested in a newly formed commercial unit in 2022 to market the broadcast rights.
French clubs have struggled to keep pace with their rivals in terms of finances. Clubs in Ligue 1 generated total revenues of more than €2bn in 2021-22, according to consultancy Deloitte, well behind the €6.4bn made by Premier League clubs in Britain.
PSG is an outlier in the French league. The club, which boasts sponsorships with Qatar Airways and US corporates including Nike, increased its annual revenues to more than €800mn in 2022-23, up from €654mn the prior season. Only Spain’s Real Madrid and Premier League champions Manchester City made more revenue than PSG in 2022-23, according to Deloitte.
However, PSG has failed to win the Uefa Champions League, Europe’s top club tournament, despite dominating the domestic league, and Mbappé has been widely expected to leave France at some stage of his career.
City, owned by Emirati royal Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, won the Champions League for the first time as part of a historic treble last season.
PSG and City have encountered scrutiny from football authorities for alleged breaches of financial regulations since they were acquired by Gulf owners.
Read the full article here
