Inside Lionel Messi's massive Barcelona contract

Lionel Messi is one hot property. Nearly every club in the world would love to have him on their roster, but not many can realistically afford him. The question is, exactly how much is the Argentine getting paid?

According to Spanish publication El Mundo, Messi will be pocketing a whopping 555,237,619 million euros once he collects all his wages at the end of his current contract. Messi's latest Barcelona contract was signed in 2017, and it expires this year in June.

To break it down, Messi has been earning around 138 million euros per season since he signed his current contract. The astronomical salary is believed to be causing financial strain on the club, which may prove to be a crucial factor on deciding if the club will be making an offer for an extension.

The current deal was signed under the reign of former president Josep Maria Bartomeu, who has since been forced to resign. The election for the next president has been moved to March 2021, and no real offer can be made until then.

The question is, will the incoming president be keen on making an offer that Messi can't refuse, of will they let the club legend slip away?

The massive deal reportedly involves the six-time Ballon d'Or winner's salary plus a number of add-ons. The club also pays Messi for image rights and numerous performance-based bonuses. There was also a reported 115,225,000 euro renewal bonus. Apart from that, there is also a loyalty payment believed to be worth up to 77,929,955 euros, but the details of which are unclear.

To put things in perspective for an ordinary person, Messi earns 380,299 euros per day. That's about 210,297 euros net after taxes are deducted.

It is no secret that the current financial climate due to the novel coronavirus pandemic has hit Barcelona hard. It remains to be seen if they will risk financial ruin by offering Messi another mega contract, or if they will essentially offload him to free up some financial breathing room.