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The new year brought a new sense of urgency to Vinicius Junior’s contractual situation at Real Madrid. However, the Brazilian forward hinted at a continuation in the capital with a telling social media message on the same day he entered the final 18 months of his current deal.
Vinicius Jr’s future has been the subject of unrelenting scrutiny for almost a full year. The 25-year-old has a contract until the summer of 2027 and revealed back in February 2025 that he hoped talks of a renewal would get underway.
Negotiations over the first half of last year were fractious at best. Reports claimed that Vinicius Jr’s eye-watering wage demands led to at least one offer being rejected. A sustained spell of underwhelming form from Madrid’s former talismanic figure has not strengthened his bargaining power and tensions with Xabi Alonso threatened to derail talks entirely.
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Since reportedly demanding Madrid pick himself or their manager back in November, there have been tentative signs of that frosty relationship thawing. A renewed rivalry with the club’s fanbase—who booed their No. 7 in the final league game of 2025—tossed another wrench into the mix.
Nevertheless, Vinicius Jr hinted at his commitment to “the club of his dreams” with a celebratory Instagram post on Jan. 1. “Let it be an incredible year!!!” it read. “2026. HALA MADRID ALWAYS! I love you.”
When Vinicius Jr signed his current Real Madrid contract, it was from a position of strength.
Back in July 2022, when the terms were agreed before it was officially announced in October 2023, the fleet-footed dribbler had added a newfound clinical edge to his game. Racking up a career-best 17 La Liga goals (and 22 across all competitions) Vinicius helped Madrid secure domestic glory before scoring the only goal of the 2022 Champions League final.
Vinicius Jr’s longest goal drought of that triumphant 2021–22 season was seven matches. It’s been twice as many games since he last scored a goal for Real Madrid, the memory of his brace against Villarreal on the opening weekend of October growing fainter each week. Kylian Mbappé, the only player at Real Madrid on a higher salary than his contract-chasing teammate, has scored 15 times over the same period.
Mbappé, however, will be sidelined for the first few weeks of the new year with a knee injury. This is the perfect opportunity for Vinicius Jr to reestablish dominance of the Madrid frontline and actually make a compelling case for the contract he is still clearly chasing after.
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