Highest paid football players in the world | Who makes the top 10?

Wondering how much football top earners make? Take a look at the world’s top ten highest-paid footballers right now.

Without a doubt, the highest-paid footballers are among the wealthiest people in sports and the world in general.

Football players are among the most famous persons on the planet. Names like Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Neymar, and Kylian Mbappe are well-known. They are known to even those who do not watch the game.

With that said, I will give a breakdown of the highest-paid footballers and how much they make.

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10. Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich) – £350,000 per week

Robert Lewandowski’s ruthlessness in front of goal earned him the FIFA Men’s Player of the Year award for 2020.

Bayern Munich spends a significant portion of its wage bill on Lewandowski’s services per season. He is a social media sensation with close to 4 million TikTok followers.

9. David De Gea (Manchester United) – £375,000 per week

The Manchester United goalkeeper is the world’s highest-paid goalkeeper, putting him at ninth place on the list.

The majority of David de Gea’s annual wages come from his Old Trafford deal. It pays little over £400,000 each week.

Following a series of gaffes in the 2019/20 season, the Spaniard’s future is now in doubt.

However, he seems to have made some recovery due to injury to United academy graduate Dean Henderson

8. Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City) – £385,000 per week

De Bruyne just signed a new contract with City, propelling him to the top of the Premier League’s salary list. He earns more than his teammate Raheem Sterling which make roughly £300,000 per week.

KDB got a contract extension till 2025, effectively keeping him in for the rest of his career. This comes as great comfort for both City supporters and Pep Guardiola.

7. Kylian Mbappe (PSG) – £410,000 per week

Kylian Mbappe, the leader of the new generation, is largely expected to take over as football’s preeminent superstar in the coming years.

The 21-year attack French attacker has been lighting up Ligue 1 with Neymar for the past three seasons.

After winning the championship, the Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year award, and the Golden Boy award with AS Monaco, Kylian Mbappé moved to PSG on a loan agreement in 2017. He, however, became a permanent PSG player in 2018 for $156 million, the second-highest transfer fee of all time.

Furthermore, Mbappe has won Ligue 1 four times, has been the leading goal scorer twice in a row, and has won the World Cup with France.

6. Gareth Bale (Real Madrid) – £500,000 per week

It’s fair to say that the Welsh superstar has been on the decline in recent years.

Gareth Bale, formerly the most expensive player in football history, was frozen out by Real Madrid and sent back on loan to Tottenham Hotspur for the 2020/21 season, where he is trying to make an impression on Jose Mourinho’s side.

Bale is one of Adidas’ most well-known players, but with only one year left on his lucrative contract, he is set loose his place among the highest-paid footballers.

5. Antoine Griezmann (Barcelona) – £575,000 per week

Antoine Griezmann’s long-awaited transfer from Atletico Madrid to Barcelona in 2019 was the fifth most expensive transfer in history, but the dynamic attacker has yet to light up the Nou Camp.

Griezmann’s huge deal might put him in line for a move away before it expires, as the Catalan club has to get their finances in order.

He is best known for performing Fortnite’s ‘Take the L’ dance to celebrate a goal in the 2018 World Cup final, and he also founded his own eSports squad last year.

4. Luis Suarez (Atletico Madrid) – £575,000 per week

Suarez, a former Barcelona player, has taken Griezmann’s place at Atletico Madrid.

Suarez was sold by Barcelona for a small fee, but he made them pay a high price when he led Atletico Madrid to their first La Liga title.

He scored 21 goals in 32 La Liga games to help Atletico win the league and, unlike some of Barcelona’s big-name players, has proven to be worth every penny of his salary.

As the 34-year-old nears the conclusion of his career, this is likely to be Suarez’s final large payday.

3. Neymar (PSG) – £606,000 per week

Neymar, the face of Brazilian football, boosted his bank account by signing a world-record £200 million deal from Barcelona to PSG in 2017.

The French club, which has recruited a roster of superstars in their effort to win the elusive Champions League trophy, pays him more than £30 million every year before bonuses.

He earns substantially less money from sponsors than the next two men on the list, which may be a symptom of his controversial personality.

2. Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus) – £900,000 per week

Being the most popular athlete in the world apparently isn’t enough to put you on top of the rich list. Cristiano Ronaldo may have the most Instagram followers but he isn’t the highest-paid footballer in the world.

The Portuguese superstar supplements his near-million-pound weekly salaries with an annual income of almost £34 million from his own CR7 brand and sponsors like Nike and Herbalife.

With a goal against Napoli in the 2021 Italian Super Cup, he is now the all-time leading goalscorer in football. He has 760 for club and country.

1. Lionel Messi (PSG) – £960,000 per week

Last year, Messi was the highest-paid footballer, receiving over $130 million. His wages, however, is the largest of any athlete across all team sports. Although, he was plummeted to second place after accepting a 70% pay cut due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Joining PSG, Messi regains his position as the highest-paid leader in the game. He takes the lead over Cristiano, his long-time rival. Ronaldo makes £50,000 lesser a week than Lionel Messi.