Lionel Messi’s exit from Spanish giants, Barcelona is reported to have wiped €137 million off the club’s brand value following his emotional press conference on Sunday.

The Argentina superstar – who played with hamstring problems against Brazil in the Copa America final – told the watching world that joining Paris Saint Germain was ‘a possibility, but nothing is agreed’ as he sat down to speak to the media.

And the club’s business revenue could drop slightly from €855 million to €778 million, according to reports.

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A report by Brand Finance claims the club could stand to lose up to €77 million of its yearly income – meaning the brand value of Barça could dip from €126 billion to €125 billion – a drop of €1 billion (£848 million).

South American football expert Roy Nemer summed it up rather nicely in a tweet which quickly went viral much to the dismay of Barça fans across the globe. The tweet has received well over 500 retweets and 2,000 likes at the time of writing.

“According to Brand Finance, Lionel Messi leaving Barcelona could cost the club €137 million in brand value,” he wrote on Twitter:

“They would lose €77 million in business revenue, €17 million on match days, and €43 million in T-shirt and merchandise sales.”

Vanguard News Nigeria