Association football (soccer) is a huge industry. There's money in football, from massive clubs earning millions to players earning hundreds of thousands of Euros a week.
Whether it's through their exceptional skills on the field or their lucrative sponsorship and endorsement deals, the financial success of football players is a testament to their hard work and dedication. Their earnings are a reflection of their talent and the global popularity of the sport.
So where is the money, and who is getting the most?
The Clubs with the Highest Revenue in the World
Before we discuss the sport's highest-paid players, we should examine the revenue of the biggest clubs.
According to the Deloitte Football Money League, a ranking system that annually ranks the world's richest football clubs by revenue, the wealthiest clubs like Real Madrid, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, and Barcelona all have an annual revenue of over €800 million each!
The 10 wealthiest clubs all earn over €500 million in revenue a year, and it probably won't surprise you to learn that the rest of the top 10 include Manchester United, Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea, and Arsenal.
Then there's Juventus, Borussia Dortmund, Milan (AC Milan), Internazionale (Inter Milan), and Atlético Madrid, who round out the top 15.
| 2024 Deloitte Football Money League Rank | Club | Revenue (€ millions) | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Real Madrid | 831.4 | Spain |
| 2 | Manchester City | 825.9 | England |
| 3 | Paris Saint-Germain | 801.8 | France |
| 4 | Barcelona | 800.1 | Spain |
| 5 | Manchester United | 745.8 | England |
| 6 | Bayern Munich | 744 | Germany |
| 7 | Liverpool | 682.9 | England |
| 8 | Tottenham Hotspur | 631.5 | England |
| 9 | Chelsea | 589.4 | England |
| 10 | Arsenal | 532.6 | England |
| 11 | Juventus | 432.4 | Italy |
| 12 | Borussia Dortmund | 420 | Germany |
| 13 | Milan | 385.3 | Italy |
| 14 | Internazionale | 378.9 | Italy |
| 15 | Atlético Madrid | 364.1 | Spain |
The Clubs with the Highest Wage Bills
Before we discuss the highest-earning players, we also need to examine the clubs that spend the most on player wages.
After all, the highest-paid footballers in the world don't necessarily play for these clubs. Most of them play as “stars” for their clubs to draw in fans and earn more money.
That said, some rich clubs still have the world's highest-paid players and a massive wage bill.
From the information we could find from 2023,
| Rank | Team | Country | 2023 Wage bill in € |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barcelona | Spain | €639m |
| 2 | Paris Saint-Germain | France | €617m |
| 3 | Manchester City | England | €554m |
| 4 | Real Madrid | Spain | €453m |
| 5 | Liverpool | England | €429m |
| 6 | Bayern Munich | Germany | €416m |
| 7 | Chelsea | England | €397m |
| 8 | Manchester United | England | €381m |
| 9 | Tottenham Hotspur | England | €289m |
| 10 | Juventus | Italy | €283m |
| 11 | Arsenal | England | €270m |
| 12 | Atletico Madrid | Spain | €245m |
| 13 | Borussia Dortmund | Germany | €236m |
| 14 | Inter | Italy | €230m |
| 15 | Aston Villa | England | €223m |
| 16 | Leicester City | England | €215m |
| 17 | Newcastle United | England | €215m |
| 18 | RB Leipzig | Germany | €192m |
| 19 | Everton | England | €191m |
| 20 | Roma | Italy | €181m |
Now, let's see which football players earn the most money.
8. Sadio Mané
Sadio Mané is a Senegalese winger and forward currently playing for the Saudi Arabian team Al Nassr.
Statista says he's earning $48 million on the field and $4 million off it. By this, we imagine that they mean his salary or wage for playing football is $48m, and the rest of his earnings are for 'off-field earnings ', which includes sponsorships, endorsements, business ventures, etc.
Before moving to the Saudi Arabian league in 2023, Mané played for Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Southampton, Red Bull Salzburg, and Metz.
He won the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich, the Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup, Champions League with Liverpool, and the Austrian Bundesliga with Red Bull Salzburg.
With Senegal, he won the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations.
Now, in his 30s, like many of the players in the Saudi Arabian league, he looks like he's planning to run down the clock on his career while earning insane amounts of money.
7. Mohamed Salah
Mohamed Salah is an Egyptian winger and forward who currently plays for Liverpool. He previously played for Basel, Chelsea, Fiorentina, and Roma.
He won the Swiss Super League twice with Basel, but most of his club honours have been with Liverpool.
He was part of the 2019-20 squad that won the Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup, and Champions League with Liverpool.
He's reached two finals of the Africa Cup of Nations with the Egyptian national side.
Of the $53 million he reportedly earns a year, $35 million is directly from playing, with $18 million coming from 'off-field earnings ', a term used to describe the money earned by a player through activities not directly related to their sport, such as sponsorships, endorsements, and other business ventures.
He's one of the very few top earners still playing in one of the world's top leagues, a pattern that will become abundantly obvious as we progress through this list.
6. Erling Haaland
Erling Haaland is another high-earning football player still playing in a competitive league.
The Norwegian striker plays for Manchester City and earns $61 million annually. $46 million on the field and $15 million off it.
Before arriving at Manchester City, he also played for Borussia Dortmund, Red Bull Salzburg, and Molde and Bryne in his native Norway. He's the son of Alfie Haaland, who famously had a feud with the Irish football legend Roy Keane.
For Manchester City, he's won the Premier League twice, the FA Cup Once, and the UEFA Champions League once. He was instrumental during the 2022-23 season when Manchester City completed the continental treble, winning the league, cup, and Champions League in the same season.
He's already one of the highest-earning players, and he was born in 2000. At the time of writing, he's not even 24, so who can imagine how much money he'll be making if his career trajectory continues like it has?
5. Karim Benzema
Karim Benzema is a French striker who currently plays for Al-Ittihad in the Saudi Pro League, the top professional football league in Saudi Arabia.
Before his move to Al-Ittihad, he played for Real Madrid and Lyon. With Lyon, he was part of the team that won seven consecutive League 1 titles, being part of the squad for four.
He also won the Coupe de France, France's domestic club cup competition during that time.
He then completed a high-profile move to Real Madrid, where he stayed for over a decade, amassing 439 appearances and 238 goals.
With Real Madrid, he won La Liga four times, the Copa del Rey three times, and the Champions League five times.
He was left out of the France squad that won the World Cup in 2018, having been excluded from the side for four years following a blackmail controversy.
but was part of the French team that won the UEFA Nations League in 2020-21 and was named in the squad that reached the FIFA World Cup Final in 2022. He was injured during the tournament and didn't play, but he was still awarded the tournament's silver medal as he was not replaced on the squad by another player.
Now, at Al-Ittihad and retired from international football, he earns $100m a year for playing football and $6 million in off-field earnings.
4. Neymar Jr
Neymar Jr is a Brazilian attacking midfielder and winger who's played for Santos, Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, and now, Al Hilal.
He won several trophies in his native Brazil with Santos. At Barcelona, he won two La Liga titles,m three Copa del Rey titles, and the UEFA Champions League.
He made a high-profile move to Paris Saint-Germain for a lot of money and won five Ligue 1 titles and three Coupe de France trophies.
In 2023, he was another big name to move to the Saudi Pro League, reportedly for eyewatering amounts of money.
Reportedly, Neymar Jr earns $80 million for playing football plus an additional $28 million elsewhere.
With $108 million in 2024, he's ranked as the fourth highest-earning football player in the world.
3. Kylian Mbappé
Kylian Mbappé is a French forward who's played for Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain. He won Ligue 1 with Monaco once and six times with Paris Saint-Germain.
He's not only one of the highest-earning players but also one of the best players right now.
After years of repeated speculation about his departure from Paris Saint-Germain, his departure was confirmed this year, and he's expected to join Real Madrid.
His reported earnings come from before the move to Real Madrid, and while we can imagine it'll be more than what he was earning at PSG ($90 million), that, combined with his off-field earnings of $20 million, placed him just ahead of Neymar Jr with $110 million in 2024.
Mbappé, unlike the players ranked second and first in terms of earnings, is still very young. Born in 1998, he likely has a good number of playing years ahead of him, and we can only imagine that spending time at Real Madrid, one of the richest and most successful clubs in the world, will bring him more success and more money.
2. Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi is considered by many to be the greatest football player of all time, and his earnings have tended to reflect this.
The Argentine forward was looking likely to spend his entire career at Barcelona, where he'd spent his whole senior career up until that point.
However, in 2021, he moved to Paris Saint-Germain, where he spent two seasons. At the end of his stint with PSG, he moved to the American Major League Soccer club Inter Miami.
He'd stated that Barcelona was the only European club he wanted to play for. However, Barcelona had been unable to retain him a few years previously due to financial constraints, so they were also unable to lure him back to the Camp Nou.
Messi is the only player on our list whose on-field earnings are less than his off-field earnings. However, his move to Inter Miami reportedly came with many sponsorships, endorsements, and other business ventures involved.
His 2024 earnings were a reported $135 million, with $70 million off-field earnings and $65 million for playing football.
1. Cristiano Ronaldo
The last player on our list is Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese forward is another who's considered one of the greatest football players of all time.
His illustrious playing career included playing for Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Juventus before he joined the Saudi Arabian side Al Nassr in a move that was worth insane amounts of money—even more than the typically insane amounts of money that footballers earn anyway!
Before Saudi Arabia, Ronaldo had won the Champions League five times, the Premier League three times, La Liga twice, and Serie A twice. This doesn't include various domestic club cup competitions and the UEFA European Championship (EURO 2016) with Portugal.
In Saudi Arabia, he earns $200 million for playing plus around $60 million in off-field earnings. With $260 million, his earnings far exceed that of any other football player, making him one of the highest-earning athletes.
Here's a summary of all the top-earning players again.
| Player | Nationality | Club | Country | On-field Earnings (USD million) | Off-field Earnings (USD million) | Total Earnings (USD million) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Portugal | Al-Nassr | Saudi Arabia | 200 | 60 | 260 |
| Lionel Messi | Argentina | Inter Miami | USA | 65 | 70 | 135 |
| Kylian Mbappé | France | Paris Saint-Germain | France | 90 | 20 | 110 |
| Neymar Junior | Brazil | Al-Hilal | Saudi Arabia | 80 | 28 | 108 |
| Karim Benzema | France | Al-Ittihad | Saudi Arabia | 100 | 6 | 106 |
| Erling Haaland | Norway | Manchester City | England | 46 | 15 | 61 |
| Mohamed Salah | Egypt | Liverpool | England | 35 | 18 | 53 |
| Sadio Mané | Senegal | Al-Nassr | Saudi Arabia | 48 | 4 | 52 |
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