7 PM.
Mark, dressed in a hoodie and jeans, arrived at the hotel restaurant and found his agent feasting.
"You're here? The food in their restaurant is quite good."
Hearing this, Mark glanced at the several empty plates on the table and smiled, "I can tell!"
After Mark also enjoyed the five-star cuisine, Raiola casually picked up a napkin, wiped his hands, and said, "Alright, let's begin!"
With Mark's first World Cup journey successfully concluded and the official entry into the off-season, the previously postponed matters needed to be addressed one by one.
The first priority, of course, was the contract renewal negotiations with Wolfsburg.
"First, congratulations on becoming a World Champion!"
"After you won the World Cup, Allofs immediately agreed to most of the conditions we proposed."
"However, our biggest disagreement with the club right now is actually over the buyout clause."
"How so?"
"They agreed to include a buyout clause in the contract, but they are not very satisfied with the amount of the buyout fee."
"The amount?"
"They are already preparing for your departure. So, they set the buyout fee very high, an astonishing eighty million euros!"
Hearing this figure, Mark's mouth twitched, and he immediately asked, "Are they sure there will be a club willing to pay eighty million euros for me?"
It's important to remember that eighty million euros in those days was not the same as eighty million in the future.
Last year, Gareth Bale, the Premier League MVP who had just joined Real Madrid from Tottenham, was only 91 million euros.
This year, J-Rod, the World Cup sensation who was about to join Real Madrid, had a reported transfer fee of only eighty million euros.
Could someone who had only played half a season in the Bundesliga, and merely had a "flash in the pan" at the World Cup, really command eighty million euros?
It seemed unrealistic!
However, this figure also showed Wolfsburg's management's estimation of his future value.
In Wolfsburg's view, only by setting such a high price could other clubs be deterred.
But Raiola's reply made Mark raise an eyebrow: "Not now, but definitely in the future!"
"You have that much confidence in me?"
Facing Mark's rhetorical question, Raiola just smiled slightly: "Of course, if I, as your agent, didn't have confidence in you, then I wouldn't be sitting here talking to you so much!"
"You will definitely become a superstar of the new era! Let alone eighty million, even one hundred million euros might not be enough to buy you!"
"Speaking of which, your transfermarkt value is thirty million euros, so setting the buyout clause at fifty million euros isn't excessive, is it?"
Hearing this, Mark was somewhat surprised by the previous number: "Thirty million euros? Wasn't it fifteen million?"
"Just today, the transfermarkt value was updated…"
As he spoke, Raiola pulled out his phone and showed Mark his transfermarkt value increase chart:
"Your value has doubled, from fifteen million to thirty million!"
"Congratulations, you are now the most expensive player in all of Wolfsburg!"
Not long ago, before the World Cup, Mark's transfermarkt value was fifteen million, second only to Cristiano Ronaldo and De Bruyne.
He hadn't expected that merely participating in one World Cup would boost his transfermarkt value to thirty million euros!
He directly surpassed Cristiano Ronaldo and De Bruyne, becoming the most valuable player in Wolfsburg!
However, upon closer thought, Mark understood.
After all, he was the youngest goal scorer in a World Cup final, second only to Pelé!
The youngest World Cup Golden Boot winner!
World Cup Best Young Player!
The youngest member of this World Cup-winning squad!
With this series of honors, it was not surprising that his transfermarkt value skyrocketed!
Furthermore, he was only eighteen years old; his age advantage was clear.
Having witnessed players in the future casually commanding tens or hundreds of millions in transfermarkt value, Mark suddenly felt that his current thirty million euro transfermarkt value didn't seem that high.
"Since my transfermarkt value is already thirty million, a fifty million buyout clause doesn't seem too high then."
"This figure was rigorously analyzed by the company's technical staff through data analysis. Any lower, Wolfsburg wouldn't agree. Any higher, it would only increase the difficulty for other clubs to buy you…"
"Moreover, you are a Wolfsburg academy player, acquired for free. Selling you for fifty million euros is already a very substantial sum!"
"What if they really don't agree?"
"Don't worry… According to my intelligence, other clubs have already sent offers, and they will agree very soon!"
Hearing this, Mark understood.
Besides the contract renewal with the club, there were also collaborations with brands.
"Pepsi is very interested in you and plans to invite you to join their family of star athletes…"
"Beats headphones also plan to invite you to become their new spokesperson in the Germany region…"
"Swiss century-old brand Breitling also feels that you perfectly match the image of their new product…"
As Raiola rattled off names, more than a dozen well-known major brands extended olive branches to Mark, the new darling of the football world.
The brands covered fields such as beverages, watches, headphones, and fashion.
As the hottest young superstar in Germany and even world football, Mark, through his outstanding looks, brilliant skills, and progressive mindset, was deeply loved by the new generation of young people, becoming a new football idol.
His social media followers had already exceeded seven million, making him the player with the most social media followers in all of German football!
"These brands have all been carefully selected."
"Also, you are very influential among young people now. While the World Cup's afterglow hasn't faded, the company plans to help you launch a personal brand!"
Hearing this, Mark became interested: "You mean, like Cristiano Ronaldo's CR7?"
"Exactly! We can start by selling baseball caps and T-shirts, and then once we establish a reputation, we'll slowly introduce other products…"
Creating a personal brand for a football star wasn't Raiola's specialty.
It was the forte of another major agent, Mendes.
Cristiano Ronaldo's CR7 brand, under his advice and operation, became a leader among star brands.
It was the success of the CR7 brand that made Raiola always want to replicate that success.
Ibrahimović's personal brand, A-Z, was also his and Ibrahimović's first attempt.
However, managing a brand is not that simple.
Even as the top superstar in Ligue 1, leading Paris Saint-Germain to dominate, Ibrahimović's personal brand remained lukewarm.
It even lost millions every year!
Through Ibrahimović's precedent, Raiola saw the possibility of brand operation in Mark.
In Raiola's view, Mark was young, handsome, and had brilliant skills, connecting more closely with the new generation of young fans. He was a better fit for the aesthetic of new-era fans than Ibrahimović.
He could completely mold Mark into a growth-oriented football idol, allowing fans to witness Mark's development.
Once this group of young fans grew up, Mark would also have a large group of loyal fans with purchasing power!
And the first step would be to start by creating Mark's personal brand!
...
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