Mbappe informs PSG he won’t be renewing his contract

French star Kylian Mbappe on Monday, June 12, told Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) that he will not be taking up an option to extend his contract beyond 2024.

The 24-year-old France striker’s current deal expires at the end of next season, with the option of another year. If he does not sign, the French champions risk losing him for nothing in a year’s time, so they could now sell him this summer rather than miss out on a windfall for one of the world’s best players.

This follows Lionel Messi recently announcing his departure from PSG to Major League Soccer (MLS) side Inter Miami in the United States.

The French star’s decision not to renew, announced in a letter to the club and revealed by the French sports daily L’Equipe, is a fresh blow to PSG following the loss of Messi to Inter Miami. There had been a deadline of July 31, 2023, for Mbappe to decide.

If, as expected, Mbappe does not trigger the extra year in his contract with PSG, he can sign a pre-contract agreement with a club outside of France in January.

Mbappe’s move comes a little over a year since he snubbed Real Madrid by signing a surprise extension to his contract to remain at the Parc des Princes.

Real, who have already agreed a deal to sign England midfielder Jude Bellingham from Borussia Dortmund, could step up their interest in Mbappe following striker Karim Benzema’s move to Al-Ittihad in Saudi Arabia.

Mbappe, one of the game’s finest talents who burst onto the scene as a teenager, has won five Ligue 1 titles with PSG but the Champions League trophy has remained out of reach.

PSG signed Mbappe from AS Monaco in 2017 in a deal reported to be around 180 million euros, making him the world’s second-most expensive signing after Neymar, who joined them from Barcelona for 222 million euros.

Mbappe became PSG’s all-time top scorer after netting 41 goals in 43 games in all competitions and helped the capital club win a record 11th French title.

He had hoped to help PSG win its first Champions League title but the team suffered another disappointment in European football’s top competition, which Manchester City went on to win by beating Inter Milan 1-0 in the final on Saturday, June 10.