Barcelona forward Lionel Messi has signed a new contract with a buyout clause worth 700m euros (£626m).
The 30-year-old Argentina international’s deal now runs until the end of the 2020-21 season.
Since joining the club at the age of 13, Messi has helped Barcelona win eight Spanish league titles and won the Champions League four times.
Messi, whose previous deal was due to expire next year, has scored 523 goals in 602 appearances for the club.
He was presented with his fourth European Golden Shoe on Friday – the award given to the highest scorer in European club football – after finding the net 37 times in the Spanish league last season.
The club announced in July that Messi had agreed a new deal, after he had reportedly rejected an initial offer in May.
In a statement, the club said Messi “still has a lot more to give, which is music to the ears of all Barca fans who will get to continue marvelling at his greatness”.
Club president Josep Maria Bartomeu said, “We are in luck with the Barça players. We continue to enjoy the best player in the history of football.”
Messi in numbers
- 4,788 – Days since Barcelona debut
- 361 – Record goal tally in La Liga
- 40 -Career hat-tricks; 36 for Barcelona, four for Argentina.
- 30 – Trophies with the club
- 8 – La Liga titles
- 4 – Champions League wins
Messi facts you might not have known
Messi is…
- the non-Spanish player with the most appearances for Barcelona (602)
- the all-time La Liga top-scorer (361 goals)
- the player with the most goals scored for the same club in the Champions League (97)
- the record holder for the most goals in a single La Liga season, having scored 50 in 2011-12
- the player to have scored in the most consecutive games in La Liga, doing so in 21 matches in a row in 2012-13
- the all-time top-scorer in El Clasico history (24)
- the third Barcelona player to reach 600 appearances in all competitions
