Football is one of the most popular sports in the world and also one of the highest paid sports in the modern era
Paris St-Germain recently replaced Manchester City as the best paid sports team in world with an average first-team salary of £101,898 per week in the French capital
Players are persuaded to leave their current club with offers a bumper salary elsewhere and we look at the worldÂ’s top ten highest earning footballers.
#10 ROBERT LEWANDOWSKI BAYERN MUNICH POLAND
Annual earnings: £14.8m
Per Month: £1,233,233
Per Day: £40,551.87
Per Hour: £1689.26
Per Minute: £28.16
Per Second: £0.47
Robert Lewandowski became the second player to switch Borussia Dortmund for Bayern Munich as he followed Mario Gotze out the exit door of the Signal Iduna Park
The Polish striker has lifted the Bundesliga title in his first season at Bavaria under Pep Guardiola
The 26 year old joined Munich on a free transfer and has netted 17 goals in the Bundesliga this season.
#9 SERGIO AGUERO MANCHESTER CITY ARGENTINA
Annual earnings: £15.6m
Per Month: £1,300,000
Per Day: £42,743.75
Per Hour: £1,780.99
Per Minute: £29.68
Per Second: £0.49
Sergio Aguero scooped the Premier League golden boot this season racking up 26 goals for Manchester City this season
The Argentine has been one of few positives in CityÂ’s season after losing their title to Chelsea and disappointing once again in Europe
Aguero has developed into one of the most deadly strikers in the world despite struggling with injuries in recent times and has been linked with a move to Real Madrid after another stellar season in Manchester.
#8 ZLATAN IBRAHIMOVIC PARIS ST GERMAIN SWEDEN
Annual earnings: £15.8m
Per Month: £1,316,000
Per Day: £43,287.66
Per Hour: £1,803.65
Per Minute: £30.06
Per Second: £0.50
PSG striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the 8th highest paid footballer in the world earning just over £300,000 a week in the French capital
The mercurial Swede has enjoyed an illustrious career for many different clubs including Ajax, Inter Milan, Barcelona and AC Milan
Ibra has bagged 23 goals in Ligue 1 this season as well as 6 goals in the Champions League as PSG lifted the league title and both French cups this year.
#7 WAYNE ROONEY MANCHESTER UNITED ENGLAND
Annual earnings: £16.5m
Per Month: £1,375,000
Per Day: £45,205.47
Per Hour: £1,883.56
Per Minute: £31.40
Per Second: £0.52
After falling out with Sir Alex Ferguson in 2013/14 season, Wayne Rooney was widely expected to leave Manchester United and was strongly linked with a move to Premier League rivals
However, the former Everton man performed a sensational U-turn and signed a bumper contract extension worth more than £300,000 per week to stay at Old Trafford
The England captain has won five Premier League titles with the Red Devils as well as one Champions League crown.
#6 GARETH BALE REAL MADRID WALES
Annual earnings: £17.5m
Per Month: £1,458,333
Per Day: £47,945.20
Per Hour: £1,997.71
Per Minute: £33.29
Per Second: £0.56
Gareth Bale became the world’s most expensive player when he swapped Tottenham for Real Madrid in an £85m deal
However, the Welshman does not rank in the top five of the highest earners in world football
After a solid debut season in Spain, Bale has been subjected to heavy criticism following Real MadridÂ’s trophy less season which ultimately cost Carlo Ancelotti his job
Now under Rafael Benitez, Bale will be hoping to re-kindle his best form next season.
#5 ROBIN VAN PERSIE MANCHESTER UNITED NETHERLANDS
Annual earnings: £18.8m
Per Month: £1,566,666
Per Day: £51,506.83
Per Hour: £2,146.12
Per Minute: £35.77
Per Second: £0.60
Robin Van Persie faces an uncertain future at Manchester United and has been linked with a move to the Serie A with Lazio
RVP does not want to operate as an impact substitute under Louis van Gaal and the 31 year old could be set to leave the club in search of first team football
The former Arsenal striker scored 10 goals for the Red Devils this season after struggling with injuries last season and has just over one year left on his bumper contract with United.
#4 THIAGO SILVA PARIS ST GERMAIN BRAZIL
Annual earnings: £20.2m
Per Month: £1,683,333
Per Day: £55,342.47
Per Hour: £2,306.55
Per Minute: £38.43
Per Second: £0.64
Thiago Silva joined oil-rich PSG from AC Milan and become PSGÂ’s highest paid player and second most expensive defender in history after Rio Ferdinand
The Brazilian centre back currently captains the Parisian and has established himself as BrazilÂ’s number one centre-back
In France, Silva has lead PSG three Ligue 1 crowns and lifted the Confederations Cup with Brazil in 2013.
#3 - NEYMAR BARCELONA BRAZIL
Annual earnings: £26.8m
Per Month: £2,233,333
Per Day: £73,426.61
Per Hour: £3,059.44
Per Minute: £50.98
Per Second: £0.85
Neymar clocks in at number three in the worldÂ’s highest earners in football
The 23 year old joined Barcelona for around £73m from Santos after gaining a reputation of one of the world’s most exciting prospects
Neymar, Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez has formed one of the deadliest attacking trios the world have ever seen; netting a total of 122 goals between them this season
Neymar scored in the Champions League final against Juventus which completed a historic treble for Barca.
#2 CRISTIANO RONALDO REAL MADRID PORTUGAL
Annual earnings: £39.7m
Per Month: £3,308,333
Per Day: £108,765.10
Per Hour: £4,531.95
Per Minute: £75.53
Per Second: £1.25
Cristiano Ronaldo falls just short of the highest earning footballer in the world despite winning the Ballon d’Or for his performances in 2014 when Real Madrid finally completed ‘La Decima’ and lifted their 10th European crown beating Atletico Madrid
Ronaldo has enjoyed another stellar season in Madrid, scoring eight hat-tricks in La Liga this season and setting a new personal best of 61 goals this season
The Portugal international finished as the highest scorer in the league and also secured the European Golden Shoe as the most prolific player in Europe
Despite the former Manchester United forwardÂ’s success, Madrid finished second in La Liga and also exited the Champions League in the semi-final at the hands of Juventus.
#1 LIONEL MESSI BARCELONA ARGENTINA
Annual earnings: £47.8m
Per Month: £3,983,333
Per Day: £130,953.63
Per Hour: £5,456.40
Per Minute: £90.94
Per Second: £ 1.51
Lionel Messi is the highest earning footballer in the world, scooping a £47.8m pay-packet per year
Messi missed out on his fifth Ballon DÂ’or to Ronaldo last year but looks almost certain to add another to his collection after playing a vital role in BarcelonaÂ’s historic treble
Messi ended the 14/15 season with 43 goals and 18 assists; making him the highest assister in La Liga
After suffering World Cup heartbreak in 2014, Messi will be looking to make amends with Argentina in the upcoming Copa America after another sensational season for the Blaugrana.
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Source : DSG
Source: DSG