The irruption of the Saudi Pro League in the world of football has reached dimensions that nobody expected. Apart from the amounts of money that are handled in this league, the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo after the World Cup in Qatar has served as an attraction for some of the best players in the European leagues. These are the 10 highest paid players in the world:
Koulibaly was one of the best-priced center-backs in Europe, but his season with Chelsea did not end well and he decided to go to Al-Hilal, also under a bit of pressure due to Chelsea’s need to sell. He thus sneaks into the ‘top 10’ of highest paid footballers and is the highest paid defender in history.
Although he had an important role in Guardiola’s plans for Manchester City, Mahrez had not been assured of starting in the team for a couple of seasons and has decided to step aside in his career and sign for Al-Ahli to join the endless list of signings in this league.
The end of Liverpool’s cycle has coincided just with the explosion of the Saudi Pro League, and Jordan Henderson has known how to take advantage of his moment to sign for Al-Ettifaq where he has met Steven Gerrard.
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His departure from Liverpool has been a bit like the end of his career in Europe, since the season he has been at Bayern Munich has not been good. After having his ups and downs with some people from the German teams, he has decided to join Cristiano Ronaldo in one of the most promising attacks in the league.
His departure from PSG seemed assured, the only thing that was not clear was the destination. Despite the efforts of the Saudi league to sign the Argentine, Messi decided to sign for Inter Miami at a rate of 45 million euros per year, and there he has become the star of the MLS.
The first (and only) on the list to play in Europe. When PSG offered him 70 million a year to prevent his departure from Real Madrid last summer, it seemed like an irresistible and unattainable figure, but now it’s one more contract. Mbappé’s contract ends next summer, so this salary could increase with his new contract, inside or outside PSG.
The Frenchman has been one of the best pivots in recent years, and rejected Chelsea’s renewal proposal to do the same as Karim Benzema, sign for Al-Ittihad. Kanté will earn 100 million euros a year during his stay in Saudi Arabia, which at the moment is until 2026.
Neymar is the latest arrival in the Saudi Pro League and sneaks into the podium of this list. His signing for Al-Hilal has been quite fast once he asked to leave PSG, and he comes to one of the teams that has strengthened the most in this transfer market.
The Frenchman had the option of continuing at Real Madrid for one more year, since winning the Ballon d’Or at Madrid activates a clause to renew for another year, but he decided to change the air and join Al-Ittihad for the next three seasons. Currently, he is the second highest paid player.
Cristiano Ronaldo took a leap of faith by signing for Al-Nassr in January, but 8 months later he has made the Saudi league one of the biggest in terms of names. At the moment he is the highest paid player in the world, with a contract until 2025 with which he earns 200 million euros a year.
Player |
Annual salary |
---|---|
Cristiano Ronaldo |
€200 million |
Karim Benzema |
€200 million |
Neymar Jr. |
€100 million |
N’Golo Kante |
€100 million |
kylian mbappe |
€70 million |
Lionel Messi |
€45 million |
Sadio Mané |
€40 million |
Jordan Henderson |
€40 million |
Riyad Mahrez |
€35 million |
Kalidou Koulibaly |
€30 million |
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