Messi, Casillas, Pepelu and the longest contracts in football history

Robin Bairner

• 10 Jun 2022 15:40 BST
• 5 min read

Pepelu wrote himself a page of footballing history on 9 June 2022, when he signed a new 10-year contract with Levante.

A 23-year-old defensive midfielder, the Spain Under-21 international has effectively bound himself to the Valencia club for the duration of his career, having first arrived there in 2012 from Denia.

A deal of such an extravagant length offers him an excellent level of security, but equally it means that if a giant club were to take an interest, it leaves him at the whim of the team. Of course, as with all La Liga players, there will be a minimum fee release clause in his deal, although the club have not made public what this will be.

In any case, the commitment between Pepelu and Levante is clear, underlined by the infinity symbol that he sported on his top.

He is not the first footballer to sign a long-term deal, though.

Lionel Messi – Barcelona

Back in September 2005, it was already apparent how talented Messi was going to become, and Barcelona wasted little time in tying the Argentine down to a contract of almost unprecedented length.

He signed a nine-year deal at that point. It proved to be a shrewd move for both player and club as he developed into the greatest player in the world at Camp Nou and was a key member of the squad as they enjoyed an era of almost unprecedented dominance.

Saul Niguez – Atletico Madrid

Saul was one of the hottest midfield properties in the world when Atletico Madrid tied him down to a nine-year deal back in 2017 along with club-mate Koke, who signed a five-year contract.

It was a deal that was brokered in a bid to ward off transfer interest in the Spain player, yet Atleti have been stung by their decision. Saul has fallen out of favour with Diego Simeone, who a loan move to Chelsea this season failed to catch light.

His future is unclear.

Inaki Williams – Athletic Club

Spain sets the standard in long deals, with young forward Inaki Williams committing himself to Athletic for nine years in 2018.

The Basque club have to take some risks in their player recruitment given that only players with family connections to the region are eligible to play for them.

Williams, though, continues to be a strong performer for the historic club, although he does have a €135m release clause in his contract that is attainable for the richest teams.

Andres Iniesta – Barcelona

Another Barcelona great to sign a long-term deal was Iniesta, who penned a ‘contract for life’ in 2017.

It turned out, that didn’t last too long. By the end of the season, he had left to play with Vissel Kobe in Japan.

Iker Casillas - Real Madrid

An all-time goalkeeping great, Casillas, along with club legend Raul, were handed ‘contracts for the rest of their sporting lives’ by Real Madrid back in 2008. In reality, this meant a nine-year deal for the goalkeeper and a one-year contract for the veteran striker.

These deals rolled over automatically if the player played 30 times in the season previous. Both departed before the end of their sporting lives, but they are remembered as incredible servants to their club.

Kevin De Bruyne – Manchester City

Proving it’s not just clubs from La Liga who hand out long-term deals, Manchester City gave De Bruyne a six-year contract in 2018 that he has since had upgraded.

There is little doubt that he has already achieved legendary status both at the club and in the Premier League, which he lights up with his vision and technique.

Cesc Fabregas – Arsenal

Cesc was pulled away from Barcelona in 2006 with the promise of an eight-year deal at Arsenal, who were then the pre-eminent force in the Premier League.

Although the Gunners endured a period of decline that they have never really recovered from, Cesc proved to be an outstanding addition.

Indeed, he was so good that Barca fought for months before eventually winning him back in 2011.

Harry Kane – Tottenham

What might have become of Harry Kane had he not signed a six-year deal with Tottenham in 2018?

He made it clear that he wanted to leave Spurs in 2021 but the club were able to use the length of his contract in their favour and rebuffed a huge transfer bid from Manchester City.

It now looks likely that he will remain with Tottenham for the remainder of his career.