Barcelona suffers major blow after Messi's exit, salary cap slashed by £246 million

La Liga has reduced the salary cap of Spanish giant Barcelona by a further 284.8 million euros for the 2021-22 season. According to the Daily Mail, Barcelona have been given a salary cap of just 85 million euros by La Liga, an organisation that has jurisdiction over football clubs in Spain. Meanwhile, Barcelona's arch-rival Real Madrid have been allotted a salary cap that is seven times greater than Ronald Koeman's side. Real Madrid now have a salary cap of 638 million euros. 

Barcelona's salary cap has seen a significant drop in the past two seasons, going down from 671 million euros in 2019-19 to 383.7 million euros in 2020-21 to just 85 million euros this year. Barcelona has been suffering from massive financial losses for the past several years, which is the key factor why La Liga has been forced to cut down the club's salary cap. Argentine footballer Lionel Messi's free transfer to Paris Saint-Germain is also linked with the financial status of Barcelona. 

What is a salary cap?

The salary cap rule was introduced by La Liga in 2013 when it found that several first and second-division clubs are taking high risks with their finances and are spending more than their actual revenue. The salary cap was imposed by La Liga to ensure that clubs don't put themselves at risk of becoming bankrupt. The COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in a significant drop in tourism in Spain, dealt a major blow to Barcelona's finances as it was overly dependent on earnings from football tourism in the country. 

Barcelona's president Joan Laporta had said that the club's salary bill with Messi on the roster amounted to 110% of their total income. Even after Messi's departure, the salary bill of players amounts to 95% of Barcelona's income. It was previously revealed that Barcelona paid Messi close to USD168 million per year for a duration of four years before the new contract came into effect. 

The highest salary cap after Real Madrid is that of Sevilla (£173m). Atletico Madrid (£148m), Villarreal (£138m), and Real Sociedad (£110m) are the other clubs that have a salary cap of more than 100 million euros. Valencia, on the other hand, have La Liga's lowest salary cap - 30 million euros. 

Image: LeoMessi/Insta/AP