34.1 Million Pounds: Romero's Transfer Fee Confirmed, 5-Year Contract, Shirt Number Undecided, Joins Lee Kang-in

Tottenham captain Romero has left for Atletico Madrid. The transfer fee is 34.1 million pounds, and the contract runs 5 years, through 2031. His shirt number has not yet been revealed.

Translated from Korean with AI assistance. Read the original. Sources and original publication dates are retained.

Summary in Three Lines

The Guardian reported Romero's transfer fee to Atletico as 34.1 million pounds, while The Sun reported 34.2 million pounds.
Romero played 156 matches in total for Tottenham and left behind the 2024-25 Europa League title and the season MVP award.
Lee Kang-in joined Atletico last July for up to 40 million euros and took the No. 7 shirt, so the two are now teammates.

1 year ago around this time, Tottenham sent off Son Heung-min (34) and handed Romero the captain's armband. On that occasion, Romero said, "I'm very happy to become the club's first-team captain." Then, 367 days later, he left for Spain. The captaincy was announced on August 13, 2025, and the transfer on August 15, 2026. The club that gave him the armband issued a farewell statement within 1 year.

Romero's Transfer Fee Is 34.1 Million Pounds, but the Figure Differs by Outlet

There is one issue: confirmed and unconfirmed figures are mixed together in this transfer. On the 15th at 8:37 a.m. (UK time), The Guardian reported Atletico's signing of Romero and gave the transfer fee as 34.1 million pounds. The same day, The Sun reported 34.2 million pounds and talkSPORT reported about 34 million pounds. The gap is around 100,000 pounds, but neither is the original club announcement.

Comparison of Transfer Fee and Contract Length by Report

Outlet	Transfer Fee	Contract Length
The Guardian	34.1 million pounds	5 years
The Sun	34.2 million pounds	5 years
talkSPORT	About 34 million pounds	4 years + 1-year option (search result summary)

The contract length is 5 years. The Guardian and The Sun both reported 5 years, and Sky Sports, citing Atletico Madrid's official announcement, gave the expiry date as June 30, 2031. However, a talkSPORT summary described it as 4 years with a 1-year option, so the reports do not match. Tottenham's statement was brief: "We have agreed Romero's transfer to Atletico Madrid."

Romero's Shirt Number Has Not Yet Been Confirmed

Many readers are searching for "Romero shirt number," but the answer is that there isn't one yet. Neither Atletico's official announcement nor multiple media reports have confirmed Romero's new number. talkSPORT only reported that he left a farewell message for Tottenham fans on social media. Shirt numbers are something the club announces separately, so any number circulating now has no basis.

The confirmed number belongs to the player next to him. Lee Kang-in (25) was given No. 7 at his Atletico unveiling last July, and his contract runs through June 30, 2031. According to Yonhap News, the transfer fee was a base of 35 million euros plus 5 million euros in options, for a maximum of 40 million euros.

Seoul Economic Daily summarized this as the second-highest ever for a Korean player, behind Kim Min-jae (50 million euros to Bayern in 2023) and larger than Son Heung-min's 30 million euros to Tottenham in 2015. By Atletico's official count, Lee's record at PSG is 124 appearances, 16 goals and 16 assists. With Romero joining, the two will now share a locker room.

Romero's Salary: Only Estimates from His Tottenham Days

Romero (28) is an Argentine center-back born on April 27, 1998. He debuted at Belgrano in 2016, passed through Genoa, Juventus and Atalanta, and came to Tottenham in 2021. He was the 2020-21 Serie A Best Defender and a member of Argentina's 2022 Qatar World Cup-winning squad. At Tottenham, he ended a 17-year trophy drought with the 2024-25 Europa League title, and UEFA named him the season's most valuable player.

His salary at Atletico has not been disclosed. All that can be verified are estimates of his previous pay. Capology estimated his fixed salary at Tottenham at 10.14 million pounds, or 195,000 pounds per week. These are not figures released by the club.

Capology's Estimated Top Earners at Atletico (Before Romero's Transfer Is Reflected, as of Aug. 15, 2026)

Rank	Player	Estimated Fixed Salary	Position
1	Jan Oblak	20.83 million euros	GK
2	Ademola Lookman	12.5 million euros	LW
3	Julian Alvarez	12.5 million euros	CF
4	Marcos Llorente	8.33 million euros	RB
5	Alex Baena	8.33 million euros	LW
6	Morten Hjulmand	8.33 million euros	DM

When Tottenham announced his contract extension in August 2025, it listed him at 126 appearances and 8 goals, but in the farewell statement 1 year later the figure had grown to 156 appearances. By the Premier League's official profile, his career league record is 123 appearances, 11 goals and 2 assists. The toll with the national team was heavy too. According to Opta, he played in 11 of Argentina's 12 international matches in 2026, logging 863 minutes.

What remains are the shirt number and the salary Atletico will pay. Neither has been confirmed by an official club announcement. Into the Calderon, a media outlet specializing in Atletico, said that if Romero manages his health and disciplinary risk, he could be a signing that changes Simeone's defense itself. But that also means managing health and discipline is a precondition. The season will provide the answer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. How much is Romero's transfer fee?

The Guardian reported 34.1 million pounds, The Sun reported 34.2 million pounds, and talkSPORT reported about 34 million pounds. In euros, it was reported to be around 40 million euros including options.

Q. What is Romero's shirt number?

As of August 15, 2026, it has not been confirmed by Atletico Madrid's official announcement or major media reports. His new teammate Lee Kang-in's number is confirmed as 7.

Q. How many years is Romero's contract?

Based on Atletico Madrid's official announcement and Sky Sports' report, it is 5 years, through June 30, 2031, and The Guardian and The Sun also reported 5 years. However, a talkSPORT search result summary described it as 4 years with a 1-year option, so there is a discrepancy.

Related Official Sites

Atletico Madrid Official Website — Official club news and squad information
Tottenham Hotspur Official Website — Farewell statement and original club announcement
Premier League Romero Profile — Career league appearances and goals
UEFA Europa League Season MVP Announcement Page — Basis for the 2024-25 individual award selection

Main image · Graphic = Whale SV · Background photo = Wikimedia Commons (Paul Vaurie), CC0