How close are you to soccer fandom? As far as merch sales for a player, players might lose value quickly, but fan retention is very sticky: You aren't going to

How close are you to soccer fandom? As far as merch sales for a player, players might lose value quickly, but fan retention is very sticky: You aren't going to find a lot of people that suddenly root for a new team once a decade. So when in 1996 Barcelona spends about 20 million for Ronaldo de Lima, they were getting young fans that stay with them for decades, and who get their children to root for the same team, as arguing with dad about soccer every day is exhausting. Hell, having a great team also makes your school-level teams more attractive, and gives you more talent: Does Messi move to la Masia just because Barcelona paid a bunch of money, the school quality, or also because there's a great chance to face great competition in a top club? Barcelona is still getting value from Cruyff, Maradona or Ronaldo, and will still make money from the Messi years for decades to come, even if the merch sales for his shirts drop to zero. Fandom leads to more fandom, and that comes from good results. A team like Manchester City has put top money into their team for decades, but the team's value lags a bit not because their short term results: They've been great for over a decade. It's the residual value of decades of good performance from other teams that they have to compete with.