Who gets a new deal? The 9 players out of contract in 2026 | OneFootball

This break for the World Cup will also give São Paulo a chance to define the future of some of its players, whose contracts expire at the end of 2026. There are nine players whose deals with the club will end in December of this year. Some of them are essential to Tricolor.

They are names in very different situations: academy goalkeepers Young and Felipe Preis, the unused center back Matheus Belém, as well as Rafael Tolói, defensive midfielder Luan, loanees Artur and Cauly, and club idols Lucas and Calleri.

All of these players can sign a pre-contract with any other team starting next July 1. Two of them, as AVANTE MEU TRICOLOR revealed, are already certain not to continue at São Paulo.

DUO ON THE WAY OUT

The Morumbi club should soon lose two youngsters from Cotia: goalkeeper Young and center back Matheus Belém. However, the two situations are different. Through his staff, the keeper informally stated that he has no plans to renew his contract.

Matheus Belém, meanwhile, should leave São Paulo by the club’s own decision. Loaned to Camboriú at the start of the year, the player ended up returning after the end of the Campeonato Catarinense, with no proposal to extend the loan for the Série D campaign.

Tricolor’s aim is to try to reach an agreement to release him in this transfer window, since he has no longer been in the club’s plans since signing this new deal in 2024, when he stopped even making matchday squads.

DEPENDS ON DORIVAL

Rafael Tolói should end up renewing his deal, even because of the team’s lack of depth in defense. The club is working to sign at least one more center back, with Portuguese defender Domingos Duarte close to agreeing, and is assessing Tolói’s stay. When he has played since his return, he has not put a foot wrong and has looked reliable. He is well regarded internally.

Luan, as always, has a completely uncertain future at the club he loves. The defensive midfielder lost ground with the arrival of Dorival Jr., who prefers his “favorite” Pablo Maia, with whom he won the 2023 Copa do Brasil. But he is also another player who could benefit from the lack of options in the more defensive midfield role.

Coach Dorival, however, has already told the board that he wants “stronger” names with greater physical capacity for midfield, such as Newton, whose arrival Tricolor is negotiating with Botafogo. Luan always receives inquiries from other Brazilian clubs, but he always reiterates his desire to stay and fight for space at the club he loves so much.

APPROVED?

Two players who arrived this season are on loan deals: attacking midfielder Cauly, who came from Bahia, and winger Artur, who arrived from Botafogo.

In Cauly’s case, São Paulo becomes obligated to buy 50% of his economic rights if the player appears in 25 matches, playing at least 45 minutes in each of them. So far, he has played 13 games under those conditions. If the target is reached, Tricolor will have to pay 2 million euros (around R$ 11.9 million at the current exchange rate) to Bahia for the midfielder.

Artur’s contract includes a clause that would force São Paulo to buy the player if he appears in 60% of the matches, staying on the field for at least 45 minutes in each one. Given the attacker’s current form, the target should be reached, as he has played 17 times since arriving, almost without rest, with three goals and two assists so far.

The amount São Paulo would have to pay Botafogo would be 6 million euros (R$ 35.9 million). Artur has already made it clear in some interviews that, as far as he is concerned, he wants to stay at Tricolor, where he arrived and adapted quickly.

IS IT WORTH IT?

Lucas and Calleri obviously no longer need to prove their love and dedication to Tricolor. The problem is that this alone is not enough. The main thing—what happens on the pitch—has been lacking for some time. The attacking midfielder developed in the club’s academy has not been able to put together a consistent run of matches due to different physical problems, the latest and most serious being a complete rupture of the Achilles tendon in his right leg, for which he has already successfully undergone surgery.

The No. 9 has also dealt with recent injuries and also underwent surgery last season. He came back flying this year, with a run of seven goals in nine games, but now he is enduring the worst goal drought of his career, with 11 matches without scoring.

Both are among the most experienced members of the squad and also play leadership roles and serve as captains. Calleri is 32, while Lucas is already 33. Despite his poor form, the Argentine is still Tricolor’s top scorer this year, with 11 goals, in addition to three assists in 30 appearances this season.

The No. 7, meanwhile, has made only 17 appearances in 2026, with three goals and one assist. And he will not play again this year because of the severity of the injury. In the best-case scenario, he could return to training by the end of the season, but São Paulo would only bring him back into action in 2027—of course, if they keep their star.

The duo divides fan opinion and, in my view, they could stay at the club, but not on such long contracts. One year with an option to renew for another based on on-field targets could be a good alternative in the veterans’ case. The many recent injuries should serve as a warning to the club, which cannot afford to have its two main names constantly unavailable. Negotiations with both players are currently on hold and should resume only after the World Cup.

Oh, yes, and there is also fourth-choice goalkeeper Felipe Preis, who was promoted to the senior squad last year, made the bench on a few occasions, but never played. He should also leave the club or be loaned out.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.