The Portuguese player is one of a (small) group of footballers who own part of their registration rights and have put the club before money

To explain Francisco Conceiçao’s imminent permanent transfer to Juventus, let’s start with what the player will give up in order to continue wearing the black and white jersey. It is a portion of the transfer fee that would have gone to him, as he owns 20% of his contract. What has the Portuguese player done? To break the deadlock between Juve and Porto and bring the parties to a financial agreement more quickly (the intention is to attend the meeting at the Continassa on the 24th), he has made it clear that he is in no hurry to collect his 20%. This has opened up a decisive window of opportunity: Juventus’ financial offer, minus that percentage, will satisfy the Portuguese club’s demands and Chico will become a Juventus player in all but name thanks to this deal worth €21-22 million plus easily achievable bonuses that could take the total to €25 million. And what about the money destined for Conceição? No definitive waiver, it will be spread over his salary over several years. Everyone is happy, from the clubs to the player who provided the decisive assist and reopens his black and white history with this beau geste for the Old Lady.

Beyond the happy ending that is about to materialize, this somewhat unusual dynamic has not gone unnoticed in a story in which it emerges that a player is partially his own owner. Less so in Europe, but in South America it was not uncommon to find players with split contracts and a percentage belonging to a fund. Years ago, FIFA put a stop to this dynamic, which led to absurd auctions and brought certain transactions under scrutiny, including Neymar’s move from Santos to Barcelona. However, with those “third parties” removed, the possibility remains that part of a player’s contract could remain with the player in some way. The most recent example is Richard Rios, a target for Roma: the Colombian owns 10% of his registration rights and, much like Conceiçao, would be willing to give up his share to facilitate the completion of a complicated deal that Massara wants to close with a bonus of $28 million (the latest offer made to Palmeiras).
MONEY? SOME SAY NO—  The other case to which the Conceiçao affair belongs is that of players who give up money to facilitate their transfer, stay or departure. Noa Lang did so when he joined Napoli, taking a pay cut, and in 2021 Pedro gave up his August salary from Roma to speed up his move to Lazio. Tonali also took a €400,000 pay cut in 2021 to stay at Milan after his first year on loan. Gattuso, on the other hand, in 2019, when discussing his severance pay after mutually agreeing to terminate his contract with Milan, turned down his last two years’ salary to ensure that all 24 remaining monthly payments to his staff were paid. And then there are Redondo and Mandzukic; the former broke his cruciate ligament, hardly played and ended the matter as follows: “I asked them not to pay me my salary until I was back playing.” The former Juve player, also at Milan, took a similar stance in 2021 when he waived a month’s salary because he was injured. “An exceptional gesture,” commented president Paolo Scaroni, “which demonstrates Mario Mandzukic’s ethics and professionalism and his respect for Milan. The club will thus be able to further support the Milan Foundation for projects in favor of young people in fragile socio-economic and educational conditions, in which sport is a tool for social inclusion.”