Diego Moreira cost Milan over €51 million plus bonuses. Here are the official figures for the deal with Strasbourg, according to documents reviewed by 'Calcio e Finanza'.
The Belgian winger, who has become a regular in the Belgium national team under Mark van Bommel, joined Milan from Strasbourg this summer in one of the most expensive transfers in the club’s history. More precisely, Moreira is the second-most expensive signing in Milan’s history, surpassing the €49.5 million spent on Rafael Leao and sitting behind another new arrival, Gonçalo Ramos. However, the exact €51,282,051 fee is set to increase, potentially taking the overall cost of the Moreira operation significantly higher for Milan.
According to 'Calcio e Finanza' a series of bonuses that Milan could pay Strasbourg during Moreira’s time at the club. The 2004-born player signed a five-year contract worth almost €3 million net per season. The bonuses cover individual performances, team achievements and a potential contract renewal. The agreement between the two clubs also includes a particularly unusual sell-on clause.
How much Moreira cost Milan - Performance bonuses
Starting with the performance-related bonuses, if Moreira records 10 goals and assists combined in any season during his time at Milan, the Rossoneri will have to pay Strasbourg a €2,051,282 bonus. However, this bonus can only be triggered once during the Belgian’s entire spell in Milan. After just four appearances – three in Serie A and one in the Europa League – Moreira has already scored three goals.
Appearances make up the second part of the individual bonuses included in the agreement between Milan and Strasbourg. The French club will receive €1,025,641 if Moreira makes 15 starts in a single season, with at least 45 minutes played in each appearance. So far, the Belgian has started just once, against Juventus, when he remained on the pitch for 61 minutes.
This bonus can be triggered throughout the duration of Moreira’s contract, but it can only be paid to Strasbourg twice, meaning a maximum potential cost of €5,128,205 for Milan.
Finally, if Moreira and Milan agree to renew his contract, the Rossoneri will have to pay Strasbourg another €2,051,282. Here too, there is a cap, with the bonus applying to a maximum of two renewals for a total potential cost of €4,102,564.
From the Champions League bonus to the Scudetto bonus
After the performance-related bonuses come the team bonuses. If Milan qualify for the Champions League during Moreira’s time at the club, they will have to pay Strasbourg another €1,025,641. This amount would be due for every Champions League qualification achieved.
However, for this bonus to be triggered, Moreira must play at least 2,000 minutes in Serie A during the relevant season, equivalent to 22.2 full matches.
The same condition applies if Milan fail to qualify for the Champions League but secure a place in the Europa League. In that case, however, the payment would drop significantly to just €256,000, in line with the lower UEFA revenue.
There is also a bonus for winning the league. If Moreira wins Serie A with Milan during his time at the club, while also playing at least 2,000 minutes in the relevant season, the Rossoneri will pay Strasbourg €1,538,461.
In this case, the Champions League bonus would not be added on top of the Scudetto bonus, meaning the French club would receive only the amount linked to winning the league.
Under the agreement between Milan and Strasbourg, all of the bonuses outlined above can be triggered in every season in which Moreira plays for Milan, with the exception of the goals-and-assists bonus, which can only be paid once.
However, the total expenditure on appearance, renewal and team bonuses has been capped at €14,358,974.
Therefore, if all the bonuses were triggered during Moreira’s time in Milan, the initial fixed fee of more than €51 million would be joined by the €2.1 million goals-and-assists bonus, which can only be paid once, plus the €14.4 million covering the renewal and team bonuses.
That would take the total cost to as much as €67.8 million.
There is also a sell-on clause in the agreement between Milan and Strasbourg, should the Rossoneri eventually sell Moreira to a third club.
Strasbourg's sell-on percentage
As mentioned at the beginning, the clause is particularly unusual because of its tiered structure.
Strasbourg are entitled to a percentage calculated on the net amount Milan receive if Moreira is sold to a third club.
If the sale price is below €10 million, Strasbourg receive nothing. However, if Milan sell Moreira for more than €10 million and up to €50 million, Strasbourg will receive 10% of the difference between €10 million and €50 million.
In other words, the percentage would be calculated on the €40 million difference, resulting in a €4 million payment to Strasbourg.
That figure would rise to €5 million if Milan sold Moreira for a fee between €50 million and €55 million. It would then drop to €3 million if the Rossoneri received between €55 million and €70 million for the 2004-born player.
If Moreira were sold for a fee between €70 million and €100 million, Strasbourg would receive €6.75 million.
There is then one final scenario: Moreira being sold for more than €100 million.
If the Rossoneri manage to increase the player’s value to that level, they would have to pay Strasbourg 25% of the amount received above €100 million.
For example, if Moreira were sold for €120 million, the 25% would be calculated on the €20 million above the €100 million threshold, resulting in a €5 million payment to Strasbourg.
Naturally, the higher the sale price above €100 million, the more Strasbourg would receive, with the 25% rate remaining unchanged.
Finally, the agreement between the two clubs was signed on Milan’s side by CEO Massimo Calvelli and owner Gerry Cardinale. Any market investment exceeding €50 million requires the signature of the RedBird founder, who personally approved all of Milan’s summer transfer operations.
Source: Calcio e Finanza
