SP. The 10 highest-paid players in world football right now – Kylian Mbappe 5th

• Wages in football have spiralled out of control, with the Saudi Pro League offering incredible salaries to players as they bid to attract football’s biggest stars.
• Nevertheless, only four of the 10 top earners in world football are playing their football in the Saudi Pro League, with the Premier League making up just as many.
• Lionel Messi, while not earning nearly as much as others through his base salary, comes in second thanks to lucrative brand deals.

Money in football has always been a controversial subject. Do footballers get paid too much in relation to other occupations that are, arguably, more important in society? Of course, it’s not the footballers’ fault themselves. If they’re offered crazy wages, they’re not exactly going to turn it down and are entitled to attempt to earn as much money as possible during their relatively short careers.

But following the boom of the sport in Saudi Arabia, the wages we’re currently witnessing have truly spiralled out of control. It’s now almost inconceivable how much money footballers are actually earning. With that in mind, who are the 10 highest-paid players in world football right now?

It’s often hard to pinpoint exactly how much footballers are being paid because contracts come in all shapes and sizes and include various bonuses, revenue shares and clauses. But to give a more well-rounded account of just how lavishly the top footballers live in 2024, on-field and off-field income have been reviewed by Forbes- the amount they’re paid each year from their club in question, alongside sponsorships and brand deals have been analysed. Some figures may give you quite a shock. Strap in, grab your popcorn and, without further ado, let’s get stuck in.

1 Cristiano Ronaldo (Al-Nassr)

£218 million per year

Cristiano Ronaldo is, quite easily, one of the greatest players to have ever played the game. The Portuguese talisman was the first high-profile star to make the move to Saudi Arabia before everyone else followed, so it’s fair to say that he is a trailblazer. After a failed second spell at Manchester United, Ronaldo made the untrodden move to Saudi Arabia and Al-Nassr.

Like other footballers, his basic wage is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of his total earnings, with his monthly take home much, much more thanks to an array of financial avenues. With a social media following in excess of 900 million across Instagram, Facebook and X (formerly Twitter), Ronaldo is the most popular athlete on the planet, and his online presence recently got even bigger with the launch of a YouTube channel in August, helping him rake in nearly £50m a year without kicking a ball. His net worth right now is estimated to be around £500 million, while he earns a mouth-watering £219m on a yearly basis. Not a bad life, eh, Cristiano?

2 Lionel Messi (Inter Miami)

£103 million per year

Just a few months after leading Argentina to its 16th Copa America title—the second of his career—Messi now has Inter Miami poised to secure its first-ever championship. The South Florida franchise has accumulated an MLS-best 71 points with one regular-season match remaining, positioning itself as the frontrunner for the MLS Cup when playoffs kick off on October 23.

Regardless of the outcome, Messi’s time in Miami likely isn’t over. He’s signed through 2025 with an option for 2026, and Inter Miami owner Jorge Mas expressed to Forbes in April that he’s “highly confident” Messi will return. Off the pitch, Messi has built an impressive portfolio of partnerships, including deals with Adidas, Apple TV, and Konami, and has more than 500 million Instagram followers. Last month, he also launched his own production company, 525 Rosario, named after his hometown in Argentina and his family’s home address. As the player most universally named the ‘Greatest of all Time’, he is fully deserving of his off-field riches.

3 Neymar Jr (Al-Hilal)

£84.31 million per year

If it wasn’t for the likes of Ronaldo and Messi, Neymar may well have gone on to become the best player in world football at one stage of his career, though the Ballon d’Or has continued to evade him year-on-year. But despite all the potential and promise, he has never really been able to call himself the best in the world. The Brazilian made a name for himself in his native country with Santos before Barcelona paid £49 million for his signature back in 2013.

He spent four seasons at Camp Nou alongside Messi and Luis Suarez, scoring 105 goals in 186 appearances in all competitions. He then became the most expensive player in football history when Paris Saint-Germain paid £200 million for his free-scoring exploits in 2017, a number which also helped take him to the top of the charts for most expensive players ever by total transfer fees.

Was it money well spent? No Champions League titles suggest not, but 118 goals in 173 appearances certainly isn’t too bad at all. However, in 2023, PSG decided that it was time to move on from the Brazilian, with Neymar signing for Al-Hilal. Despite pocketing a hefty £84.31 million every year at his new club, the global superstar is still some way behind the Messi and Ronaldo hegemony.

4 Karim Benzema (Al-Ittihad)

£79.71 million per year

After 14 unbelievable seasons at Real Madrid where he scored 354 goals, Karim Benzema decided to call an end to his time at the Bernabeu for the increasingly growing riches of Saudi Arabia in the summer of 2023. Having endured playing in the shadows of Ronaldo in the Spanish top flight, it is, perhaps, much the same in the Middle East given that his former teammate has, too, made the switch to the Saudi Pro League.

Now at the age of 36, you can’t exactly blame the French striker for wanting a final payday before calling time on his illustrious career. And what a payday it is, picking up a fine £79.71 million annual payout at Al-Ittihad, which equates to a hefty £9,099 every hour of the day. He may not have settled very well at his new club, with supporters giving the centre forward a harsh nickname, but the crazy money he is on will certainly help to soften the blow.

5 Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid)

£69 million per year

Kylian Mbappe burst onto the scene at Monaco during the 2016/17 season as a youngster, scoring 26 goals as a teenager. It led to Paris Saint-Germain loaning the striker ahead of a permanent deal worth €145 million plus €35 million in add-ons.

The striker had been at the Parc des Princes for six seasons but completed his inevitable move to Real Madrid during the summer after scoring 212 goals in 260 appearances in all competitions for the French giants. In 2023, following Mbappe expressing his desire not to renew his existing contract with PSG, the club accepted a €300m bid from Al-Hilal, who reportedly were prepared to offer him an eye-watering €200m-a-year salary. However, Mbappe rejected the deal.

Now plying his trade for the Champions League greats, Paris-born Mbappe is the Spanish top division’s third-highest earner on £505,000 a week. In turn, the talismanic Frenchman will earn a whopping £54m every year for the entirety of his five-year contract, while off-field riches boost that sum up to £69m every 12 months.

6 Erling Haaland (Manchester City)

£46m per year

Erling Haaland has to go down as one of the best strikers in world football for one reason. He’s the best at putting the ball in the back of the opponent’s net. The Norwegian has set the world alight ever since he graced the Premier League with his presence. He smashed the goalscoring record for a single season, scoring 36 times in only 35 appearances during his debut campaign in the competition.

This frightening feat then carried over into the next season, and is still showing no signs of waning at the start of the 2024/25 term. He is a defender’s worst nightmare, and for that reason alone, he’s fully deserving of his £46m annual take home. But while his off-field bursaries are still relatively small compared to other players, this is certainly bound to change.

7 Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid)

£42m per year

Vinicius Junior, the only newcomer on this year’s earnings list, has been with Real Madrid since he was 18, and in that time he has become an electric scorer, netting 85 goals in 273 matches in all competitions with the club. He has also become an extremely marketable figure, immensely popular in Latin America. The Brazilian has 11 brand deals—including Sony’s PlayStation, Pepsi and Clear shampoo—supplementing an on-field contract he quietly signed in 2022 that ties him to Los Blancos until 2027.

This year, he is the bookmaker’s favourite for the Ballon d’Or, and so, for that reason, it wouldn’t be any surprise that his yearly pay package of £42m continues to surge, leaving his rivals behind.

8 Mo Salah (Liverpool)

£41m per year

Salah’s star power shines beyond the Premier League, reaching across North Africa and the Middle East, making him highly sought after by brands in the region. He has partnered with major companies like Vodafone, Mountain View Egypt, Pepsi, and Adidas, among others, and commands a massive following of nearly 100 million across Facebook, Instagram, and X (formerly Twitter).

The immensely talented right-winger has been a talismanic figure for the Reds in recent years, claiming a Champions League crown, Premier League title, FA Cup, two League Cups, FIFA Club World Cup, and UEFA Super Cup during his time at Anfield. Last season was a substandard season in the eyes of Liverpool as Jurgen Klopp bid farewell – but fear not, Salah was still on hand to put up eye-catching numbers in terms of goals and assists, something which has already continued in 2024/25.

9 Sadio Mane (Al-Nassr)

£40 million per year

In 2014, Sadio Mane arrived in the Premier League when Southampton signed him from Red Bull Salzburg, and it didn’t take long for the winger to show off his incredible talent, scoring 25 goals in two seasons, including the fastest hat-trick in Premier League history.

He joined Liverpool in 2016 for a fee worth £34 million – and it proved to be an incredible piece of business for the club. Mane went on to become one of the best and most exciting attackers in world football, ending his Liverpool career with 120 goals in 269 appearances. He helped the club become the best in Europe, reaching three Champions League finals and winning one of them.

In 2022, he joined Bayern Munich, but the move didn’t exactly go to plan. Injuries and teammate disagreements plagued his career in Bavaria, and he was allowed to leave after just 12 months. Al-Nassr capitalised and announced the signing of Mane on a huge contract in 2023, one that sees him earn £40 million on a yearly basis alongside his bonuses.

10 Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)

£30m per year

Raking in a cool £555,555 every seven days is Kevin De Bruyne. Arguably Manchester City’s most influential midfielder alongside Rodri, the 31-year-old has cemented his status as a club legend at the Etihad Stadium, with 103 goals and 171 assists under his belt thus far.

The Belgium international added a sixth Premier League title to his trophy collection last term and made history as a figurehead in guiding the Cityzens to an incredible treble in the 2022/23 campaign. Doubts were raised when City brought De Bruyne, the man with the joint-seventh most Champions League assists in history, back to the Premier League all those years ago, but he has emphatically answered his critics ever since.

All wage figures per Forbes – correct as of 19/10/2024