The transfer window has not officially opened yet, but Real Madrid have already spent, excluding wages, close to 100 million euros.
There is a detail, though. All four of the new arrivals under Mourinho’s squad (Cucurella, Dumfries, Konaté and Bernardo Silva) will also generate income, having been called up by their respective national teams for the World Cup.
According to Mundo Deportivo, FIFA has allocated a 305 million euro fund for clubs whose players took part in qualification and are now involved in the final stage of the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The figure is 70 per cent higher than the last edition in Qatar in 2022.
Of this, around 215 million (70 per cent of the total) goes to clubs with players in one of the 48 qualified national teams. And among them, as mentioned, are also Real Madrid’s latest signings.
How much, then, will Real Madrid earn from its new arrivals? Difficult to say, as FIFA uses a complex calculation based on minutes played and how far each team progresses. What is certain is that the minimum amount per player is 4,200 euros per day.
It is true that the new signings were registered with different clubs during the qualification phase, but FIFA regulations are clear on this point: “If a player is registered with a new club during the release period, the benefits associated with him shall be distributed proportionally between the previous and the new club, based on the respective registration dates.”
Real Madrid will therefore start receiving payments from 1 July, when the contracts can be officially registered. Before that date, the clubs receiving the bonuses linked to players’ national team performances will be those holding their registration prior to the transfer.
All four national teams involved (Spain, the Netherlands, France and Portugal) are also among the favourites for the tournament and could go all the way, reaching the final in New York on 19 July.
A quick calculation suggests that if one among Cucurella, Dumfries, Konaté or Bernardo Silva reaches the final, Real Madrid would earn at least around 80,000 euros. If two do, double that. Added, of course, to contributions from other national teams from 1 July onwards, from the round of 16 and all quarter-finals onward.
These are not astronomical figures, given Real Madrid’s spending on these players. Still, Florentino Pérez will know which national teams to keep an eye on.