The fact that the best football players in the world earn millions of dollars shouldn’t come as a surprise. Unlike many years ago, even average players make a lot of money because billionaires sponsor some football clubs. Of course, the more popular footballers earn significantly more than the rest.
Speaking of earnings, the data from Nostrabet.com shows that Cristiano Ronaldo’s $200M+ salary makes him the highest-paid football player. “Following his recent move to Al-Nassr, CR7 is now the most expensive footballer in terms of salary. He even surpassed the likes of Mbappe and Messi, even though both of them have jaw-dropping contracts”, said Kristiyan, Nostrabet’s football expert.
Despite being 37 years old, Ronaldo continues to break records all the time. However, his most recent achievement is outside the pitch because it is related to the money he makes. Putting him alongside the other top players is interesting, so let’s learn a few things about them. Of course, we will start with Ronaldo himself.
#1 Cristiano Ronaldo – $200M+ per year
As mentioned several times, Cristiano Ronaldo holds the record (at least for now) for earning the most amount of money per year from salaries. He made a lot while part of Manchester United, but his move to Al-Nassr changed everything.
Speaking of moving, CR7 decided to join the club shortly after the end of the FIFA World Cup 2022. He was a part of Manchester United before that, but his famous interview with Piers Morgan changed everything. Following his statements about the club, Manchester United and Cristiano decided to part ways.
After this decision, Cristiano Ronaldo didn’t have a team for a couple of weeks until Al Nassr made the big announcement. Some fans were surprised by CR7’s decision because he denied joining Al-Nassr during the World Cup. However, it seems like the centre-froward decided he wanted a new challenge, so he accepted Saudi Arabia’s offer.
According to the information we know, CR7’s deal with his club from Saudi Arabia is for 2 years. However, there is also a 5-year deal where Ronaldo has to help Saudi Arabia as a marketing ambassador.
#2 Kylian Mbappé – $128M per year
The number 2 spot on our list regarding soccer players who earn a lot of money is for Kylian Mbappé. France’s 24-year-old superstar has been widely regarded as the best in the world in the last couple of years. He had a major role in France’s World Cup triumph in 2018 and the country’s second place in 2022.
When writing this, experts think Kylian Mbappé earns around $128M per year after joining PSG. The French superstar became one of the most expensive players in the world in 2018 when he moved from Monaco to PSG. During that time, the French club (backed by Qatar’s billionaires) paid around 180M EUR.
There have been rumours about Mbappé’s future because clubs like Real Madrid are eager to get his signature. However, considering his current transfer market value, the Spanish club will have to pay an insane amount to get him. Of course, this will likely not stop them because Real Madrid is famous for spending millions on players.
#3 Lionel Messi – $120M per year
The third spot on the list of the highest-paid football players goes to the 2022 World Cup winner. Lionel Messi is regarded as the greatest player of all time, and his recent success with Argentina backs it up. He and his teammates defeated France in the World Cup final in Qatar and lifted the most prestigious trophy in football.
The fact that Lionel Messi is among the highest-earning players in football shouldn’t be surprising to anyone. The Argentinian legend played for Barcelona for more than 20 years before he became a part of PSG. Although people didn’t expect this to happen, Barcelona’s failure to offer a new contract gave PSG a chance to get Messi on a free transfer.
While it is true that he was criticized in the beginning, Messi’s performance in 2022 has been impressive. Needless to say, he was also the main reason why Argentina won the World Cup, so fans can agree that he deserves the money he gets. Speaking of the devil, Messi supposedly earns around $120M annually.
#4 Neymar – $87M per year
Unsurprisingly, the fourth name on the list also comes from PSG. Neymar has been Brazil’s megastar in the last couple of years, so he earns a staggering $87M per year.
The number 10 in Brazil’s squad was a part of Barcelona for a couple of years until he moved to the French club. This happened in 2017, and PSG paid Barcelona around 220M EUR. This made Neymar the most expensive footballer in the world (and he still is).
Similar to the other mega stars from PSG, Neymar gets a lot of money from salaries. People in Brazil and those who support the national team hoped he would lead his team to their 6th World Cup trophy, but this never happened. Brazil lost to Croatia and failed to go up against Argentina.
#5 Mohamed Salah – $53M per year
Lastly, the 5th spot on the list is for Liverpool’s striker Mohamed Salah. After joining the English club, Salah quickly became the most famous footballer in Africa. The Egyptian superstar played a significant role in Liverpool’s success in the last couple of years, which is why he earns the most money in the club.
According to some sources, Salah earns around $53M per year. The 30-year-old player became a part of Liverpool in 2017 when the English Club paid around 42M EUR to Roma. Salah’s transfer value is much higher now, even though he and Egypt failed to qualify for the World Cup.
How will Cristiano Ronaldo’s move to Saudi Arabia affect the sports betting industry?
Football is the world’s most popular sport, which is why it also sets the trends in online sports betting. Usually, people who want to punt on it pay more attention to the top leagues in the world, such as the EPL. Although they will continue to bet on them, Ronaldo’s move to Al-Nassr means that Saudi Arabia’s league will become a lucrative option.
Although Al-Nassr is the most popular team following this transfer, it isn’t the most successful one. This title goes to Al-Hilal, a team that has 18 domestic trophies and finished second a total of 15 times. Hence, people have the option to wager on a couple of top clubs.
Ronaldo’s decision to move to Saudi Arabia will positively affect football in Asia as a whole. He is the most popular sports athlete globally, with more than 528M followers on Instagram. Unsurprisingly, when he revealed that he’d join Al-Nassr, the latter gained millions of followers.
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