The four numbers that began to circulate after Memphis Depay's renewal do not measure the same thing. On August 18, 2026, Corinthians made official the extension of the striker's contract until July 31, 2028, but the detailed values of the agreement came from journalistic investigations. The main key to understanding the account is to separate the debt from the previous contract from the remuneration from the new contract and, within each block, distinguish net value from gross cost for the club.
This also resolves the most important confusion: R$77 million is not Memphis' new salary. This value appeared as an estimate of the old debt after interest and monetary correction. In the renewal agreement, the player agreed to reduce this pending issue to R$42 million net, as long as the schedule is met. The net salary for the new period is approximately R$54 million in 24 months, while the gross cost of salaries and image rights is close to R$79 million.
The short answer: each number answers a different question
The R$42 million represents the old debt renegotiated in net value. The R$77 million represents a version of the same debt with interest and correction, before the discount and also as a risk of return in case of default, according to UOL's findings. The approximately R$120 million appears when adding, in a simplified account, the gross salary package of the new contract, around R$79 million, to the R$42 million net of the renegotiated debt. The approximately R$135 million arises when the account replaces this net R$42 million with the gross cost of the debt settlement operation, estimated at around R$56 million.
Therefore, it makes no sense to add R$42 million, R$77 million, R$120 million and R$135 million as if they were four independent obligations. To a large extent, these are different states or calculation bases for the same commitments.
What was officially confirmed by Corinthians
The club confirmed the renewal on August 18, 2026 and informed that Memphis will remain at Corinthians until the end of July 2028. The official confirmation resolves the duration of the contract, but did not publish a complete spreadsheet with all the financial bases that began to be mentioned in the press. Therefore, the decomposition of values depends on the calculations of vehicles such as ge, UOL and ESPN, which use slightly different cutouts.
R$42 million: the old debt after renegotiation
The figure of R$42 million is the net reference for the debt from the previous contract after renegotiation. It includes amounts that were already outstanding with Memphis, such as installments of gloves, image rights and bonuses, according to findings published after the agreement.
The new agreement provides for four installments of R$10.5 million. There is disagreement between the vehicles about the exact months of the schedule. The ge informs semiannual installments from January 2027; ESPN describes expirations in January and August 2027 and again in January and August 2028; UOL places payments between February 2027 and July 2028. The common point is the division into four installments over 2027 and 2028.
R$77 million: the debt corrected, not a new salary
Before the renegotiation, Corinthians' Financial Directorate had calculated the outstanding amount at approximately R$77 million when interest and monetary correction were incorporated. UOL detailed that the gross base was R$42 million, rose to around R$57 million with interest and reached R$77 million after the corrections considered at that time.
The discount obtained by Corinthians is subject to punctuality. A UOL report published on August 19, with a statement from a member of the Guidance Council, informs that a delay could return the debt to the level of R$77 million. In other words, R$42 million and R$77 million are not two separate debts: they are two possible conditions for the same old obligation.
The new salary: R$54 million net and around R$79 million in gross cost
In the new contract, Memphis will receive approximately R$54 million net in salaries and image rights during the 24 months of the contract, or R$27 million net per season. When labor charges, vacations, 13th salary, taxes and other incidents are included, the cost of the work and image package for Corinthians is around R$79 million. ESPN found a very close figure, R$78.6 million.
This difference between net and gross explains why it is not correct to just take what reaches the player and treat it as the club's final cost. In contracts of this size, the basis used to answer how much the athlete earns may be different from the basis used to answer how much the club pays out.
Where does the package of approximately R$120 million come from
UOL reported that the new agreement is worth around R$120 million. The logic of this estimate becomes clear when looking at the components disclosed by the vehicle itself: around R$79 million in the gross salary package and R$42 million in the renegotiated debt. The sum amounts to approximately R$121 million, compatible with the rounded reference of R$120 million.
In this reading, the debt is entered at the renegotiated net value, and the marketing budget of R$7.7 million is treated separately. UOL reported that this amount had already been allocated through the partnership with Esportes da Sorte. This choice of basis helps to understand why UOL's bill is below the gross cost estimate used by other vehicles.
Why ge and ESPN reach close to R$135 million
GE calculates around R$135 million in cost for Corinthians when adding approximately R$79 million from the new employment contract and image rights with around R$56 million in financial cost to pay off the old debt. This cost of R$56 million is higher than the net R$42 million because part of the obligations requires tax incidences, charges and payment operations that increase the effective disbursement.
ESPN reaches practically the same result through another breakdown: R$56.9 million gross for debt renegotiation and R$78.6 million for work and image contracts. The sum results in R$135.5 million. The difference of a few hundred thousand in relation to GE's R$135 million is compatible with rounding and small differences in assumptions.
Is the marketing budget of R$7.7 million inside or outside the account?
This is another point where the reader may encounter seemingly incompatible totals. The new agreement reduced the marketing budget from R$15.4 million to R$7.7 million. ge informs that this amount must be financed by partner companies, but that Corinthians assumes the obligation if it is unable to raise the money. UOL, in turn, reported that the funding had already been resolved with Esportes da Sorte.
Thus, depending on the question, the R$7.7 million may appear as an economic value associated with the contract without necessarily being included in the club's projected disbursement on the same basis as salaries and debt. It's exactly this kind of methodological difference that makes correct headlines work with different totals.
What if Corinthians delays an installment?
The most relevant risk of the agreement lies in the delay mechanism. Memphis agreed to waive part of the interest, corrections and fines to fix the debt at R$42 million, but UOL reports indicate that these benefits could be lost if Corinthians does not meet the schedule. In this scenario, the old obligation could return to approximately R$77 million.
This means that the discount should not be read as a definitive and unconditional reduction from day one. The effective cost will also depend on whether the club pays the installments on the contracted dates. For an institution with stressed cash flow, this condition is a central part of the analysis, not a detail.
So how much have Corinthians actually taken on from Memphis by 2028?
The answer depends on the base. If the question is how much Memphis will receive in new salary and image rights, the reference is approximately R$54 million net in two years. If the question is the gross cost of this new package for Corinthians, the reference rises to approximately R$79 million. If the question includes the old debt renegotiated for a net value of R$42 million, we arrive at the disclosed package of approximately R$120 million
by UOL. If the debt is considered at the gross settlement cost, of around R$56 million, the total goes to approximately R$135 million, as calculated by ge and ESPN.
The number of R$77 million must be kept in a different drawer: it represents the previous debt plus interest and correction, and also the level that may be required again if there is a delay, according to the calculation published by UOL. Therefore, the most accurate reading is not to choose which headline is right, but to identify which question and what calculation basis each headline is using.
To monitor the agreement from now on, the most important information is simple: observe whether the four installments of the debt are paid on time and whether the marketing budget remains covered by sponsors. These two variables could change the effective cost of the commitment until July 2028.
