- 25 Jan 2025
REVEALED: Ronald Araujo's SHOCK new Barcelona release clause
Barcelona may have managed to tie Ronald Araujo down to a new contract, but he will still be available in the summer, according to Spanish media.
It was one of the sagas of the January window. Araujo, after missing the entirety of the first half of the season due to injury, returned to action and was immediately linked with a departure from Barcelona.
Juventus were pushing hard for the Uruguay international following the season-ending ACL injuries suffered by Juan Cabal and Gleison Bremer and Araujo was initially open to the move.
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However, after fresh talks with Barcelona director Deco, the 25-year-old changed his mind and agreed to a contract extension until 2031, which was quickly wrapped up by the club and already announced on Thursday.
Despite his new long-term deal, Araujo will still be on the market in the summer and next January.
Araujo's shockingly low release clause
According to the reliable Relevo, Araujo no longer has a prohibitive €1 billion release clause. On the contrary, he will be quite affordable going forward, with his exit clause standing at just €65 million for the summer and €80m for January 2026.
This means that Araujo could actually be one of the cheaper elite options on the market in the summer. Indeed, as the outlet points out, his contract extension was more a marriage of convenience than anything else.
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Barcelona did not want to run the risk of losing Araujo for nothing in 2026 and agreed to hand him a pay rise. Still, the club remain keen on potentially cashing in on the centre-back, who has no shortage of suitors.
Despite returning to the vaunted 1:1 rule, which allows the Catalans to spend every bit of revenue they generate, Barcelona still need to be mindful of their economic situation and, with this in mind, Araujo is one of the assets that could yield a significant fee down the line.