Together, they have earned nearly a billion dollars

Football is a financially driven sport, and every year the financial value of the number one sport in the world increases. The $1 billion Club World Cup for 2025 was the largest ever, a record-breaking summer transfer window for clubs — Liverpool was the first club to spend over $500 million and the $1.4 billion sale of a majority stake in Spanish soccer giant Atlético Madrid. With all this money flowing around, it is no surprise that the highest paid soccer players earn enough to live the lives of royalty.
According to data published in various industry publications — Forbes, Sportico, SportsPro, Bloomberg etc., — in 2025, the top 10 highest paid soccer players in the world collectively earned almost a billion dollars.

1. Cristiano Ronaldo — $280 million

On the pitch — $230 million
Commercial deals — $50 million

Portugal’s 41-year-old superstar continues to dazzle fans and sponsors alike. Ronaldo’s bicycle kicks, his aggressive pursuit of 1,000 career goals, and the increasing attention from sponsors are all contributing to Ronaldo’s growing wealth. According to Sportico, Ronaldo’s career earnings now stand at $1.83 billion.
In addition to playing on the pitch, Ronaldo is constantly expanding his CR7 Brand Business, which includes hotels, gyms and watches, and his YouTube channel UR Cristiano now has 77.6 million subscribers. Across all digital platforms, Two Circles reports that Ronaldo has nearly 1.04 billion followers — more than any person on ear.

Cristiano Ronaldo – bbci.co.uk

In 2025, Ronaldo opened a new location of his Pestana CR7 Hotel Chain in New York City, specifically in the heart of Manhattan on Times Square. In addition, Ronaldo agreed to become the global ambassador for Perplexity AI — an AI based search engine that competes with Google — and was also named an ambassador for the first Esports World Cup (EWC) 2025, which was held during the summer months in Riyadh.

2. Lionel Messi — $135 million

On the pitch — $60 million
Commercial deals — $75 million

At 38 years old, Messi still shines. This past year in Major League Soccer was outstanding for Leo; he was the league’s top goal scorer, helped bring Inter Miami their first championship and for the first time in the league’s history, was named the best player of the year twice in a row. After the year, Messi extended his contract with the club until the end of 2028.

Lionel Messi – tribuna.com

Messi also began his own production company called 525 Rosario (named after his hometown and family residence in Argentina) in partnership with Smuggler Entertainment. 525 Rosario creates TV and film productions, sports and entertainment programming and branded content. Several additional sponsors joined his sponsorship portfolio in 2025, including Lowe’s (a home improvement store chain) and the restaurant chain El Club de la Milanesa. Additionally, Messi is working towards life after football by investing in sports, media and tech startups via his firm Play Time Sports-Tech.

3. Karim Benzema — $104 million

On the pitch — $100 million
Commercial deals — $4 million

Over 14 years at Real (from 2009 to 2023), Karim Benzema earned more than €200 million — a sum the Frenchman has already earned in two years in the Middle East. By the end of the next summer when Benzema’s contract with Al-Ittihad expires, his total earnings plus a bonus for serving as ambassador for the 2030 World Cup will be €320 million according to Marc.

Karim Benzema – 365dm.com

Compared to Ronaldo and Messi, Benzema’s income from his commercial deals pales in comparison, however, Benzema did recently purchase Pablo Picasso’s painting “Portrait of a Bearded Man” for €1 million.

4. Kylian Mbappé — $95 million

On the pitch — $70 million
Commercial deals — $25 million

By the end of December, Mbappé equalled Ronaldo’s record for goals scored for Real in a single calendar year (59) and is performing exceptionally well in Madrid. A win in court against Mbappé’s former club PSG at the end of the year — the Parisian club was ordered to pay Mbappé €61 million in salary and bonus arrears — boosted the New Year’s spirits of the 27-year-old.

Kylian Mbappé – britannica.com

Mbappé has multiple large commercial deals with leading global brands — Nike, Hublot, Dior, Oakley, EA Sports, Accor, Sorare and many others. Mbappé also manages his own investment company Interconnected Ventures, which owns FC Caen and the media company Zebra Valley. Through his fund, Mbappé invested in the German electronic company Loewe, the online watch sales platform Wristcheck and the sailing team France SailGP Team in 2025.

5. Erling Haaland — $80 million

On the pitch — $60 million
Commercial deals — $20 million

Norway’s Haaland became the first player to reach the 100-goal mark in the Premier League in only 111 games (the fastest anyone has achieved this feat) in 2025. Haaland shattered Alan Shearer’s 30-year record (124 games). The striker certainly deserves the title of highest-paid player in the Premier League ($33.5 million per year), and his salary could rise to $60 million due to numerous bonuses.

Erling Haaland – espn.com

Haaland has over a dozen sponsorship agreements with Breitling, Dolce & Gabbana, EA Sports, Midea, Samsung Galaxy, Bama, Db, Beats by Dre and many others. In addition to his family company, Sports Office AS, Haaland is promoting his own investment firm Pillage 3 AS, which is registered in Luxembourg.

6. Vinícius Júnior — $60 million

On the pitch — $40 million
Commercial deals — $20 million

Brazil’s virtuoso from Real approaches the marketing of his VJR brand very seriously — his team includes dozens of people, including an agent, a psychologist, image makers, a personal trainer, photographers, and many others. Therefore, it is no wonder that in the SportsPro ranking of the 50 biggest “marketing stars” for 2024, Vini’s brand ranked second behind gymnast Simone Biles.

Vinícius Júnior – bbci.co.uk

Among Vinícius’s sponsors are Nike, Hugo Boss, Sony, Prada Eyewear, Gatorade, PlayStation, Pepsi, Clear, Vivo, Betnacional and Dubai Tourism. Vinícius also donates a significant portion of his earnings to charity. In 2020, he founded an institute in Rio for the education and development of children and teenagers from disadvantaged neighborhoods and invested €3.5 million in the project. Additionally, Vinícius has pledged to donate at least 1% of his income to charitable causes through the organization Common Goal.

7. Mohamed Salah — $55 million

On the pitch — $35 million
Commercial deals — $20 million

After signing a contract extension with Liverpool in the spring of 2025 until July of 2027, Salah has multiple and highly profitable sponsorship agreements, particularly in the Middle East and Africa. Salah serves as an ambassador for Vodafone Egypt, Uber Egypt, and DHL’s ambassador in the MENA region and works with Bank of Alexandria and Mountain View. In addition, Salah’s sponsors include adidas, Pepsi, Gucci, and Oppo.

Mohamed Salah – s-nbcnews.com

Salah does not limit himself to sponsorship agreements. He is creating his own fashion brand Moga (which is short for Mohamed and Ghazal, his wife’s name) and is investing in tech startups such as Whoop. In his home country, Salah is establishing schools, medical centers and providing access to clean water.

8. Sadio Mané — $54 million

On the pitch — $50 million
Commercial deals — $4 million

Mane is no less active than Vinícius and Salah in terms of charitable contributions. The striker has invested tens of millions of dollars in the infrastructure of his native village of Bambali in Senegal. He established a hospital, school, provided 4G internet and constructed a post office and gas station. In addition, Mane provides €70 a month to every needy family in the village.

Sadio Mané – bbci.co.uk

In addition to a high salary with Al-Nassr, Mane’s success is enhanced by his agreements with New Balance, Pepsi, Vodafone, and Dubai Tourism. The African also purchased the French fourth-division football club Bourges Foot 18.

9. Jude Bellingham — $44 million

On the pitch — $29 million
Commercial deals — $15 million

Unlike many professional soccer players who primarily sign deals with sportswear companies, Bellingham has recently been aggressively pursuing contracts with prominent fashion companies (Louis Vuitton, Gucci). As indicated by his enthusiasm for fashion, Bellingham is in demand by the style industry.

Jude Bellingham – britannica.com

One of Bellingham’s most lucrative agreements is with adidas — he is the primary face of the adidas Predator line, and in 2024 adidas released a collection of clothing and footwear bearing the JB5 logo created by the Brit. This means that he receives royalties (a percentage of sales), similar to those of Michael Jordan or Cristiano Ronaldo.

10. Lamine Yamal — $41.8 million

On the pitch — $31.8 million
Commercial deals — $10 million

By the time he was 18 years old, the Barcelona winger had turned into a commercial force. He is one of the main ambassadors for adidas and wears personalized F50 LY304 boots. In addition to adidas, Lamine’s sponsors include brands like Visa, Beats by Dre, Powerade, Oppo, Konami, TwoJeys and Nesquik.

Lamine Yamal – bbci.co.uk

Brands targeting the large and young audience that follow Lamine on social media are attracted to his sponsorship agreements. Currently, he has approximately 80 million followers across all platforms.