Report: Kylian Mbappé Decides to Join Real Madrid After PSG Contract Expires

After months of rumors and speculation, Kylian Mbappé has reportedly decided to leave Paris Saint-Germain for Real Madrid this summer.

According to ESPN's Julien Laurens, Mbappé has yet to inform PSG or Real Madrid of his decision, but he plans to officially announce it next week.

Laurens noted that PSG attempted to convince Mbappé to stay by offering him a raise on his €72 million salary, but the French star turned it down.

ESPN's Laurens and Rodrigo Faez reported in July that Mbappé had no interest in signing a contract extension with PSG despite club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi saying PSG would sell him if he didn't.

World football insider Fabrizio Romano previously reported in June that Mbappé planned to decline his contract option for the 2024-25 season so he could become a free agent in 2024.

According to Laurens, opting out will result in Mbappé missing out on €100 million in bonuses. He is also expected to make only about half of the salary at Real Madrid that he did at PSG.

Laurens noted that Mbappé's contract negotiations with Real Madrid will focus heavily on him being allowed to play for France in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

The 25-year-old Mbappé has been with PSG since 2017, and he has firmly established himself as one of the biggest soccer stars in the world during that time.

Across all competitions, Mbappé has scored 241 goals in 288 appearances for PSG, winning five Ligue 1 titles and four Ligue 1 Player of the Year awards.

Through 20 matches this season, PSG sits atop the Ligue 1 standings with 47 points, putting them nine points ahead of second-place Nice.

Mbappé has also been a superstar on the international stage for France, helping them win the 2018 FIFA World Cup and finish second in the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Mbappé won the Young Player Award at the 2018 World Cup, and both the Golden Boot and Silver Ball at the 2022 World Cup.

If Mbappé goes to Real Madrid as expected, he will join a club that currently holds a one-point lead over Girona for the La Liga lead.

As for PSG, they are targeting AC Milan star Rafael Leão as a potential replacement for Mbappé, per Laurens.