Football is a sport where there is a lot of money to be made. The majority of football stars earn a lot of money by selling their skills in order to play the game.
One intriguing fact about the wealthiest footballers in the world is that not every player that earns the greatest wage is also the richest footballer in the world. Look at the top 10 football players in terms of wealth and their net worth.
1. Faiq Bolkiah
With a net worth estimated at $20 billion in 2023, Faiq Bolkiah is the wealthiest football player in the world. He was the captain of the Brunei national team and a member of the Bruneian Royal Family. He is now a midfielder for the Thai team Chonburi. He was born in Los Angeles, California, on May 9, 1998.
2. Cristiano Ronaldo
Celebrity Net Worth estimates that CR7’s net worth will reach $500 Million in 2023. He earned $105 million before taxes and fees in 2020, which put him at No. 4 on the Forbes Celebrity 100 list. He is currently the world’s second-richest football player.
CR7 is highly renowned for being a successful businessman in addition to his success in sports. This guy owns a motel. He also has a long-term sponsorship agreement with Nike.
Cristiano Ronaldo is the richest player in the world with a net worth of $650 million.
He is making a total of $70 million in salary and incentives. Ronaldo returns to United, where he previously played from 2003 to 2009 and won three Premier League titles and one Champions League.
Moreover, he makes money through endorsing various goods sold under the CR7 brand, such as perfume, underwear, eyewear, hotels, and gyms, in addition to via his own sponsorships and deals with these and other businesses.
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3. Lionel Messi
With $104 million in pre-tax earnings in 2019, he was the third-richest footballer in the world and the fifth-highest-paid celebrity overall.
He is now under contract with Barcelona through the 2020–21 season, and his annual compensation is about $80 million. He will be supported by Adidas for the rest of his life. Lionel Messi, one of the richest football players in the world, is thought to have a net worth of $600 million.
In 2008–09, the year when Messi, then 22 years old, won his first Ballon d’Or, he established himself as a crucial component of the Barcelona squad and assisted the team in winning the first Spanish triple.
4. David Beckham
Former English football player David Beckham is now ranked third among the wealthiest players in the world. His estimated total wealth is $450 million. Beckham now holds the positions of president and co-owner of Inter Miami CF as well as Salford City.
When Beckham signed with Manchester United at the age of 17, he began his professional career. He set several records over his roughly 20-year career and rose to prominence as a football ambassador around the world. Football’s top-paid players include Beckham, who was named the highest-paid player in the world in 2013. Beckham has routinely been among the sport’s biggest earners.
In addition to playing football, he is a style icon, and his numerous sponsorship deals make him one of the most well-known athletes in the world. He is a philanthropist as well and has represented UNICEF in the UK since 2005.
5. Dave Whelan
David Whelan, one of the greatest players in football history, is still ranked among the wealthiest athletes in the world at the age of 85 because of his incredible career and lucrative business enterprises. Whelan played for the football teams Blackburn Rovers and Crewe Alexandra and also owned Wigan Athletic.
Whelan is one of the wealthiest soccer players, with an estimated current net worth of close to 210 million dollars. Whelan has been given the Freedom of the Borough of Wigan by the Wigan Borough Council.
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6. Neymar Jr.
Neymar da Silva Santos Junior is the world’s fourth-richest football player. He has a $200 million net worth, as stated on his wiki page. The Brazilian and Paris Saint-Germain sensation Neymar Jr. is now ranked as the seventh-highest-paid celebrity in the world. Before taxes, his net income for 2019 was $95.5 million.
Neymar has signed a $350 million, five-year contract with Paris Saint-Germain through June 2022. Neymar made his Santos debut when he was just 17 years old. He assisted the group in capturing two titles in a row, a Cup do Brasil and Santos’ first Copa Libertadores since 1963.
He assisted Barcelona in capturing the La Liga, Copa del Rey, and Champions League trebles while playing with Lionel Messi, and as a result, he placed third in the FIFA Ballon d’Or. He completed a domestic double in the 2015–16 campaign.
7. Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is ranked the third richest footballer in the world by Forbes, with a net worth of $190 million. Zlatan Ibrahimovic is now on a €3.5 million, six-month deal with Serie A team AC Milan.
He had a wonderful playing career, playing for clubs like Manchester United, Paris Saint-Germain, and Juventus after leaving top leagues like AC Milan and Barcelona. He has also been a spokesperson for Nike and Adidas. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, is one of the richest athletes in the world, with a net worth of $190 million.
Ibrahimovic became known as one of Europe’s most gifted strikers while playing for Ajax before joining Juventus two years later.
He joined Barcelona in the summer of 2009 to play for AC Milan in one of the most expensive transfers in history. He won his second Serie A championship with Inter Milan in the 2010–11 season before joining Paris Saint–Germain in the summer of 2012.
8. Wayne Rooney
The fifth-richest person on the globe is a football star, Wayne Rooney. He is quite wealthy, with a $150 million net worth. Rooney has consistently been among the top 10 highest-paid football players in the world for the previous 11 years.
Wayne Rooney reportedly made £2.6 million ($3.5 million) per year at DC United. Among the businesses he has collaborated with are Samsung, Coca-Cola, EA Sports, and Nike. Wayne Rooney’s estimated net worth is $160 million.
He became the first English player to win the Premier League, FA Cup, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, and FIFA Club World Cup when he joined Manchester United in the summer of 2004.
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9. Alexandre Pato
According to several statistics, Alexandre Pato is the tenth-richest football player, with a net worth of around 145 million dollars generated from the game alone. One of the richest football players in the world right now is Brazilian star Alexandre Rodrigues da Silva, popularly known as Pato.
He has been playing soccer for approximately 16 years, starting his international career when he was 16 years old. He is now a member of
the Orlando City SC team. With his fantastic international start, Pato’s incredible football career is well warranted. When he scored his first goal for the senior Brazilian squad, he broke Pele’s record for the youngest international goal scorer.
10. Gareth Bale
Gareth Bale, one of the best and wealthiest players, is regarded as the greatest winger of his time. Welsh football player Gareth holds the record for most times being awarded Welsh Footballer of the Year.
In 2013, Bale was sold from Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid for an unknown sum that was ultimately revealed to be £85.1 million, setting a new record for transfer fees. His current estimated net worth is about 145 million dollars.
Bale is the finest player to ever play for Wales and changed the landscape of the nation through professional football championships.