Messi valued at eye-watering £331m, three times more than his rival Ronaldo!

Lionel Messi has been valued at a staggering €400million (£331m) – almost three times more than his great rival Cristiano Ronaldo.

According to a study commissioned by three leading European clubs, the Barcelona forward’s value far exceeds his buy-out clause of €250m (£200m).

And Paris Saint-Germain – who are owned by the Qatar Investment Authority – are reportedly ready to pay the eye-watering fee for the Argentina international.

Professor Gerardo Molina, who wrote the report, said: ‘There is a club that is practically sponsored by a government [reported to be PSG] that would be prepared to pay €400 m for Leo Messi.

‘There are three European clubs that asked us to come up with this study in order to find out how much Messi was worth. We cannot say who the clubs are. The clubs wanted to analyse the viability of a possible transfer for Messi.

According to the study, Ronaldo is worth between €150-160m (£124-130m).

Molina added: ‘Messi is five times more marketable than Cristiano Ronaldo. According to studies, Ronaldo is worth between €150 and 160m. Messi’s buy-out clause is €250m, we believe that figure is obsolete and devalued.

‘Right now there is no player in the world of sport that has a greater value than Leo Messi. According to market research in the last five years, Messi is worth €400m.’

Messi will fight it out with Ronaldo and Bayern Munich’s Franck Ribery for the Ballon d’Or on January 13.