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A buyout clause requires a contracted player to pay a predetermined amount to their parent club before they are allowed to move to another club. This amount is usually well above the player's market value. In essence, the player needs to 'buy out' his contract, often with the help of the club they intend to go to.
In some countries like Spain, it is mandatory to have a buyout clause in a player's contract. In others like France, it is forbidden to have such a clause. In a few other countries like England, a buyout clause is optional.
A release clause, on the other hand, is a relatively new concept. It's also a predetermined amount in a player's contract, which, based on other conditions, can be activated by another club. In such a case, the parent club will have to allow their player to talk to the other club.
A buyout clause is different from a release clause, even though the two terms are often used interchangeably. To activate the buyout clause, the purchasing club needs to pay the amount mentioned in the player's buyout clause to the player. The player then has to pay the same to his parent club. But due to legal and tax complexities involved in the same, this route is rarely traversed.
On that note, here are the 12 players with the highest buyout clauses in the game at the moment:
#12 Sergi Roberto (Barcelona) - €500 million
Sergi Roberto has been with Barcelona for more than a decade now. The 29-year-old midfielder has played more than 300 games across competitions, making almost 50 goal contributions (12 goals, 37 assists).
The six-time La Liga and two-time Champions League winner hasn't played many games since last season, though. Nevertheless, he is set to sign a new two-year contract with the club that will keep him at Barcelona until 2024.
Roberto, who made his Barcelona debut in 2010-11, has scored twice in eight games across competitions this season.
#11 Gerard Pique (Barcelona) - €500 million
Gerard Pique is one of the most experienced players at Barcelona after the departure of Lionel Messi this summer.
Pique is one of the most decorated and prolific goalscoring defenders in the game. He has won every major title on offer, including the FIFA World Cup, Euros, Champions League and La Liga. The 34-year-old has played over 550 games for Barcelona across competitions, registering an impressive 51 strikes and 16 assists.
Recently, Pique extended his Barcelona contract till 2024, with a buyout clause of €500 million subject to conditions.
Pique, a Champions League winner with Manchester United, has scored once in eight games this season. This is even as Barcelona have endured a torrid start to their campaign.
#10 Gareth Bale (Real Madrid) - €500 million
Gareth Bale is one of the most exciting wingers in the game at the moment. Though his prowess may be on the wane, he has had a fairly successful near decade-long stint at Real Madrid.
The Welshman has scored over 100 goals in eight seasons with Los Blancos. He has been a big-game player for them, scoring in the 2014 and 2018 Champions League final wins against Atletico Madrid and Liverpool, respectively.
Bale signed a new contract with Real Madrid in 2016 that would keep him at the club until 2022. Madrid inserted a reported buyout clause of €500 million in his contract to ward off the likes of Manchester United.
Now in the final year of his Real Madrid contract, the 32-year-old has scored once in three games under Carlo Ancelotti this season.
#9 Isco (Real Madrid) - €700 million
Isco has struggled to be a consistent first-team player at Real Madrid during his nearly decade-long stint at the club.
Nevertheless, the 29-year-old attacking midfielder has amassed close to 350 appearances for the club across competitions. Isco has registered over 50 goals and as many assists for Madrid during this period.
The four-time Champions League winner signed a contract extension with Madrid in 2017 that would see him at the club until 2022. He has a reported buyout clause of €700 million in his contract.
Despite being linked with an exit from the club this summer, Isco stayed put and has scored once in six games for the La Liga leaders.
#8 Vinicius Jr. (Real Madrid) - €700 million
Vinicius Jr. has one of the highest buyout clauses of any player in the game at the moment.
Just eight games into the season, the 21-year-old winger has made a rousing start, scoring five times to propel Real Madrid to the top of the La Liga table. The Brazilian had previously scored only 14 times in over 100 games for the club since arriving from Flamengo in 2018.
He might be one of the lowest-paid Real Madrid players. But the club has no intention of letting go of the young Brazilian, who already has a reported buyout clause of €700 million in his current contract.
According to reports, Vinicius Jr. could soon sign a new deal with Real Madrid that would keep him at the club until 2024.
#7 Marco Asensio (Real Madrid) - €700 million
Marco Asensio is one of the best young players at Real Madrid at the moment. The 25-year-old winger has scored 40 times and provided 25 assists in exactly 200 games for the club.
Asensio signed a six-year contract extension with Real Madrid in 2017 that would see him at the club until 2023. He has a reported buyout clause of €700 million in his contract.
The two-time Champions League and La Liga winner has made a bright start to his 2021-22 campaign, scoring thrice in seven games across competitions.
#6 Brahim Diaz (Real Madrid) - €750 million
Brahim Diaz has played only 21 games for Real Madrid since making his debut for the club in 2018-19.
Since then, the 21-year-old has spent most of his time on loan spells. He reportedly has a €700 million buyout clause with Real Madrid, but is currently on a two-year loan stint at AC Milan.
The attacking midfielder has already scored four times across competitions for the Rossoneri this season. He netted seven times for the club last campaign.
#5 Luka Modric (Real Madrid) - €750 million
Luka Modric is widely regarded as one of the finest active midfielders in the game at the moment.
The 2018 Ballon d'Or winner has been at Real Madrid for almost a decade. He has made almost a hundred goal contributions (28 goals, 62 assists) in nearly 400 games across competitions. Known for his dynamic passing range and ability to dictate the tempo of games from midfield, Modric is still going strong despite turning 36.
Modric, who recently signed a one-year extension with the club, has a reported buyout clause of €750 million.
The four-time Champions League winner has had a slow start to his 2021-22 campaign, though. He has registered only one assist in seven games across competitions.
#4 Federico Valverde (Real Madrid) - €750 million
Federico Valverde has one of the highest buyout clauses of any active player at the moment.
The 22-year-old midfielder has been a mainstay at Real Madrid since debuting for the club three years ago. Valverde has made over 100 appearances for Madrid, making 12 goal contributions (five goals, seven assists).
Earlier this year, the Uruguay international signed a new contract extension with Madrid that would keep him at the club until 2027. He reportedly has a buyout clause of €750 million in his current contract.
The 2019-20 La Liga winner is yet to open his account for the campaign, though, registering only one assist in ten games across competitions.
#3 Antoine Griezmann (Barcelona) - €800 million
Antoine Griezmann made heads turn when he moved from Atletico Madrid to Barcelona in a big-money transfer (€120 million) in the summer of 2019.
However, the Frenchman spent an underwhelming two seasons at Camp Nou. He scored 35 times in two seasons before he was sent back to Atletico Madrid on a loan deal this summer on deadline day.
Griezmann has a gargantuan €800 million buyout clause in his Barcelona contract, despite his largely below-par outings for the club. After the departure of Lionel Messi this summer, Griezmann was expected to hit the ground running. But the Frenchman cut a sorry figure and was booed by his own fans.
Back at his old stomping ground, the 2018 FIFA World Cup winner has scored just once in seven games across competitions.
#2 David Alaba (Real Madrid) - €850 million
David Alaba is arguably one of the best left-backs in the game at the moment. After a hugely successful decade-long stint at Bayern Munich, the 29-year-old joined Real Madrid this summer, seeking a new challenge.
The Austria international, a double continental treble winner, has made a promising start to life at Real Madrid. After the departures of Raphael Varane and Sergio Ramos, Alaba is one of the most experienced defenders at the club. He reportedly has a huge buyout clause of €850 million.
Alaba is yet to open his account for his new club, but he has racked up two assists to help his club climb to the top of the 2021-22 La Liga table.
#1 Karim Benzema (Real Madrid) - €1 billion
Karim Benzema is one of the most in-form players across Europe's top five leagues at the moment.
The Frenchman has been on a tear since the start of the season. He has racked up nine goals and seven assists in only six games to help Real Madrid move atop the La Liga table. Benzema has almost single-handedly shouldered Madrid's goalscoring burden since the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo in the summer of 2018.
He has scored at least 20 league goals in each of his last three campaigns. Unsurprisingly, Benzema has the highest buyout clause of any player in the game at the moment. The Frenchman has a reported buyout clause of €1 billion.
Since joining Real Madrid in the summer of 2009, Benzema has scored 289 goals and registered 151 assists in over 550 games for the club across competitions.
