Barcelona are set for a host of key contract decisions in 2026.
Following the summer chaos where the club were forced to scramble to secure La Liga registrations for Joan Garcia and Marcus Rashford, the financial picture remains complicated.
La Liga have slashed Barcelona's salary cap for 2025/26 to €350m [£305m] from €462m [£402m] following months of delays over confirmations on sponsorship deals and the sale of VIP boxes at their redeveloped Camp Nou home.
Barcelona will hope for an increase for the 2026/27 season, but that will likely depend on more sales, and securing extra revenue from fresh sources.
Players out of contract in 2026 could be required to take a pay cut with Barcelona already in talks with Frenkie de Jong and Robert Lewandowski over their expiring deals.
Club president Joan Laporta confirmed negotiations are progressing positively with De Jong's representatives as they aim for a compromise over owed salary payments.
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Sporting Director Deco backed up that stance on De Jong, but admitted the situation with Lewandowski depends more on the player himself, despite the club holding a clause to renew his deal for another year.
"We’re in talks. I think we’ll reach an agreement. He's [De Jong] an important player for us,” as per Mundo Deportivo.
"I think he’s happy at Barcelona. We’re happy with him, too. I don’t think there will be any problem.
Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images
"It's a different situation with Robert. He was important and remains so for us. I also think, given his age and career stage, he’ll assess year by year. There comes a time when we don’t make many plans for the future.
"He’s a player who depends a lot on his will, how he feels and sees things. We’ll see his progress through the year and then we’ll talk about it."
Lewandowski has scored 71 La Liga goals in 106 games since joining from Bayern Munich ahead of the 2022/23 season with 103 in 151 across all competitions.
That sensational consistency has led Barcelona to two La Liga titles, as he finished as Barcelona's top scorer in all three seasons, in an underlining of the Poland international's enduring excellence at the top level.
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