These are the ten highest-paid footballers in 2021

The ten richest footballers will earn a total of 579 million US dollars (around 493 million euros) in 2021. Who made it to first place, where Ronaldo, Neymar, or Messi find themselves, and which 22-year-old player also ends up among the highest-earning footballers in the world in the current Forbes ranking 2021.

These are the ten highest-paid footballers in the 2021 ranking

10th place: Eden Hazard, Real Madrid, $29 million (€24.7 million)

The Belgian winger joined Real Madrid from Chelsea in 2019 for €115m. With the change and earnings of 26 million dollars, he rose to become one of the top earners of the Spanish record champions. Advertising revenue adds another $3 million, bringing Hazard to a total of $ 29 million annually. Among other things, he is the advertising face of McDonald’s in Belgium and has advertising deals with Nike and Nissan.

9th place: Gareth Bale, Real Madrid, $32 million (€27.3 million)

Also in ninth place is Gareth Bale, a Real Madrid player from Wales. After a loan spell at Tottenham Hotspur in England, Bale returned to Real Madrid this summer. His current contract here runs until 2022, which, like Hazard, gives him a salary of $ 26 million per year. The passionate golfer receives another six million dollars from advertising revenue. Bale thus earns US$32 million annually. 

8th place: Paul Pogba, Manchester United, $34 million (€28.9 million)

French midfielder Paul Pogba is the eighth highest-paid footballer in the world with earnings of $34 million. Pogba has been with Manchester United since 2016, earning $27 million a year from salaries alone. The 2018 world champion will receive an additional seven million dollars from advertising partners such as Adidas.

7th place: Andres Iniesta, Vissel Kobe, $35 million (€29.8 million)

Former Spain international has won everything there is to win in professional football during his career. Andres Iniesta, multiple Spanish champions, world champion, and Champions League winners, played at FC Barcelona since he was young before moving to the Japanese first division club Vissel Kobe in 2018. The now 37-year-old midfielder earns 31 million US dollars a year at his new club. Four million US dollars are added through advertising revenue and sponsorships, which brings Iniesta a total of 35 million US dollars annually.

6th place: Robert Lewandowski, FC Bayern Munich, 35 million US dollars (29.8 million euros)

The FC Bayern Munich striker, who was recently named Europe’s top scorer with the Golden Boot, is sixth in the current rankings with earnings totaling US$ 35 million.

Lewandowski earns 27 million US dollars with the German record champions. The current record scorer in the Bundesliga with 41 goals earns another eight million US dollars with advertising deals with Huawei, Nike, and T-Mobile, among other things.

5th place: Mohamed Salah, Liverpool FC, 41 million US dollars (34.9 million euros)

The Liverpool FC Egyptian winger earns $25 million a year at his club. Under the German coach Jürgen Klopp, Salah won the Champions League in 2019 and the first English championship since 1990 in 2020. This also brought the 29-year-old into the focus of several advertising partners. Deals with Pepsi and Adidas add another 16 million US dollars to the salary at Liverpool FC. With this, Salah earns a total of 41 million US dollars annually.

4th place, Kylian Mbappé, Paris Saint-Germain, $43 million (36.6 million euros)

At 22, Kylian Mbappé is not only the youngest in this ranking but also in the top 50 best-paid athletes worldwide. Through his involvement with Paris Saint-Germain, the French international receives a salary of 28 million US dollars a year. He earns an additional $15 million from advertising deals. Mbappé was already the figurehead of the FIFA video game in 2021 and is also for the current part of FIFA 2022. He comes to a total of  43 million US dollars a year. 

3rd place: Neymar, Paris Saint-Germain, $95 million (€79.8 million)

A long way behind the fourth highest-paid soccer player in the world, Brazilian international Neymar is third with annual earnings of US$ 95 million. At PSG, the offensive man alone earns 75 million US dollars a year. In addition, there are still 20 million US dollars from advertising deals with Puma, PokerStars, and the video game Fortnite. Neymar earns a total of $ 95 million a year.

2nd place: Lionel Messi, Paris Saint-Germain, $110 million (€93.7 million)

Lionel Messi is the second highest-paid footballer in the world. After more than 21 years at FC Barcelona, ​​the club and their figurehead Lionel Messi recently parted ways. Due to the ongoing corona crisis and the associated financial losses, FC Barcelona could no longer keep the Argentine, which is why Lionel Messi officially switched to Paris Saint-Germain on August 10, 2021. There, Messi earns as much as teammate Neymar with a Salary of $75 million. In addition, Lionel Messi does advertising for Adidas, Pepsi, and Lays, among others, earning an additional 35 million US dollars. Overall, the multiple world footballer Messi comes to  110 million US dollars a  year.

1st place: Cristiano Ronaldo, Manchester United, 125 million US dollars (106.5 million euros)

The highest-earning soccer player in the world is Cristiano Ronaldo with $125 million a year. The multiple Champions League winner, world footballer, and 2016 European Championship winner with Portugal switched from Juventus to Manchester United this summer. Just like in Turin, Ronaldo is said to be bringing in $70 million a year in salary at United. Through numerous lucrative advertising deals with, among others, Barclays, Exxon Mobil, and the business consultancy KPMG, the Portuguese earn an additional 55 million US dollars, which means a total annual income of 125 million US dollars.