According to reports from France, Kylian Mbappe passed up the opportunity to earn €250 million gross with Paris Saint-Germain this season, opting instead to join Real Madrid on a free transfer.

Last summer, Mbappe completed his move to the record 15-time Champions League winners by signing a long-term contract, finally concluding a transfer saga that lasted over three years.

As one of the world’s most marketable football stars, Mbappe has excelled in his inaugural season in Madrid. He is anticipated to be a key player in the club’s future plans, alongside Jude Bellingham and Vinicius Junior.

French publication L’Equipe state that Mbappe earns an annual gross salary of €32m in Madrid following his move, making him the club’s highest-paid player ahead of Vini, and the highest-paid player in La Liga, and that he turned down a significant amount of money to remain in PSG.

The fact Mbappe sacrificed money has been well documented over the past nine months but not in the depth of this latest report. The France national team captain is understood to have pocketed a €100m signing fee just for joining Real Madrid – but that extraordinary figure, coupled with his salary, still doesn’t touch the sides of what could have been earned in Paris.

Indeed, Mbappe passed up the opportunity to earn €250m pre-tax in just 12 months, had he opted to remain at PSG. That would have comprised of €70m in base salary plus a further €180m in add-ons, bonuses and other image-related payments.

Image rights are traditionally something that Real Madrid split 50-50 but it’s thought Mbappe’s agent and mother, Fayza Lamari, was quickly able to negotiate a 80-20 split in favour of her son, speeding up the negotiations between the two parties.

Officials from Madrid are said to have waived their concerns – despite “tense and tough” conversations – over conceding such a high percentage to Mbappe, knowing the shirt sales and commercial revenue he can generate will far outweigh the need to create an unnecessary road block in talks.

On the field, Mbappe has paid Real Madrid back with 31 goals in all competitions so far, including 20 in 26 La Liga games. Europe’s most decorated club are in with a chance of winning their 37th domestic title as a result, and could continue their recent domination of the Champions League with an unprecedented 16th crown.