Spanish Government law prohibits a worker from receiving less than 50 percent of the salary of the previous employment contract. The regulation was implemented by the Spanish government to prevent financial manipulation. This has caused Messi to stress many times that he has done everything he can to survive, including cutting his remuneration. In fact, the number of salary cuts that are crowded in the media is "only" 50 percent. Legally, Messi can't do more than that.
Lionel Messi finally said goodbye to Barcelona on Sunday (8/8/2021). Barca's financial condition does not allow them to keep Messi while complying with LaLiga regulations. At a special press conference session from Camp Nou, Lionel Messi said his side and Barcelona had "tried every way to continue cooperation" including accepting a pay cut of up to 50 percent. Messi even returned from his holiday in Ibiza on Thursday with full confidence that he will sign a new contract and could feature in the Joan Gamper trophy match this Sunday. However, the situation changed 180 degrees quickly. Barcelona president Joan Laporta had already given an explanation two days before Lionel Messi faced the media. He said it was impossible for the Camp Nou camp to retain the superstar in terms of the club's financial condition.
The question is is it possible for Messi to continue playing at Barcelona without getting paid or only being paid a symbolic amount? Could it be for example for Messi, if he really wanted to, to continue playing for Barca without receiving remuneration from the club he has played for since he was 13 years old? This was answered by the Guardian columnist, Sid Lowe. Basically, the club can no longer register Messi to the player registration for the 2021-2022 season because Barcelona is already on the brink of financial death. Meanwhile, their total debt stands at 1.173 billion euros. The club's salary spending increased by almost 50 per cent during 2017-2020. Together with Messi, Barcelona spend 110 percent of their income to pay player salaries.
"We don't have room to move about salaries. LaLiga's rules and regulations govern financial fair play and we have no margin," said Joan Laporta at his press conference. "The numbers shown by the audit are much worse than what we saw at the start." which is much higher. Even without Messi, our sports contracts represent 95 per cent of revenue." Meanwhile, BBC writer Raj Chohan tweeted that Barcelona would not be able to register Lionel Messi again even if the captain did not receive a penny.