Cruzeiro announced, last Thursday (26), the renewal of Rayan Lelis’ contract until the end of 2030. The move served to value the young 19-year-old striker financially and protect the celestial team on the national market.
Considered one of Raposa’s greatest jewels, the athlete received a salary increase. Itatiaia found that the exit fine for Brazilian clubs grew from R$40 million to R$70 million. This is because the national clause is two thousand times the salary received by the player when signing the new contract.
For clubs abroad, Rayan Lelis’ fine is 100 million euros (R$607 million). The value was defined in the previous renewal with Cruzeiro, closed in October 2025. The last contract would run until the end of 2029.
Rise of Rayan Lelis at Cruzeiro
In recent months, Rayan Lelis has grown and consolidated himself as one of the team’s main promises. The striker shone in the under-20 category and ended 2025 with 14 goals.
Still under the command of Leonardo Jardim, the athlete began training with the main team and made his professional debut in the defeat to Santos, in the last round of Series A of the Brazilian Championship last year. In 2026, with Tite, he still received some opportunities.
The highlight of the current season for . The striker helped Cruzeiro win the competition for the second time by scoring a goal and providing an assist in four games.
Trajectory
Rayan Lelis was born in Goiânia, on January 19, 2017. At just 12 years old, he left home to take risks in pursuit of his dream. Athletico-PR was destiny.
There, the promise remained until he was 16 years old and had to “make do”. Before being able to enter the Furacão accommodation, Rayan was “adopted” by a “social mother” and lived for two years in the house of another athlete from the red-black base.
After his journey in Curitiba, the striker arrived in Belo Horizonte to live his dream at Cruzeiro.
The player has stood out in the under-20 team and even attracted interest from European clubs. In professional terms, so far, there have been three games.
