| The question as to whether or not athletes in | | | | number of goals at the end of the season, |
| general and soccer players in particular, | | | | while agreeing for a lower wage cutout. |
| should be earning the kind of money theyre | | | | |
| earning is more vibrant then ever these days, | | | | However, considering all of the above, it |
| with clubs paying their players incredible | | | | would be logical to say that the highest |
| amounts of money each year. | | | | earning soccer players are also the ones with |
| | | | the highest wages. A club will want to keep a |
| The comparison to other sports is also very | | | | player that brings in incredible amounts of |
| relative. A gymnast will train all his life, | | | | money through endorsements and merchandise |
| miss out on a lot of his younger years only | | | | sale, so they will offer him a high salary. |
| to be able to handle a world class | | | | According to Forbes Magazine, here are the |
| performance, but he will still not win as | | | | top 3 earners: |
| much in his lifetime as one of the highest | | | | |
| earning soccer players makes in a year. But | | | | Ronaldinho ($29.5 million, salary + |
| thats the markets call and theres no fair in | | | | endorsement deals) - one of the most famous |
| sales share. | | | | and nonconformist personas in soccer, |
| | | | Ronaldinho has become the trademark of |
| Getting back to our topic, its somewhat | | | | playing soccer as a game, not as a business. |
| difficult to judge exactly how much a player | | | | His constant smile while playing and his |
| makes simply from his club salary, because | | | | tricks made him one of the most popular |
| many wage details are private, due to obvious | | | | figures today, despite the fact that hes not |
| reasons. As a club manager, you want to | | | | as handsome and clean-cut as Beckham or Kaka. |
| create complete harmony in your team and with | | | | Ronaldinho is also widely considered one of |
| all of them knowing that player gets paid | | | | the best ever soccer players, despite the |
| twice as much as the rest, wont help you out | | | | fact that he still has many years to play for |
| with that. | | | | FC Barcelona, or his future clubs. |
| | | | |
| The highest earning soccer players can also | | | | David Beckham ($29.1 million, salary + |
| be affected by having their salaries publicly | | | | endorsement deals) no presentation required, |
| available, because at every less than bright | | | | Beckham is more than just a soccer players |
| performance, theyll be confronted with a My | | | | for close to a decade now. His recent move to |
| God! He really should have played better for | | | | LA Galaxy from Real Madrid for an impressive |
| the kind of money hes making type of | | | | transfer fee was well worth it, since |
| exclamation from fans, media and fellow | | | | American finance analysts agreed that the |
| players. | | | | transfer would soon turn to profit, as |
| | | | Beckham shirt sales and other endorsements |
| A soccer players income also comes from | | | | would soon earn the club their money back. |
| several other sources than simply his wage. | | | | |
| For example, the best ever soccer players | | | | Ronaldo ($23.4 million, salary + endorsement |
| always made more money from endorsements and | | | | deals) the ex-phenomenon, the chunky |
| ads than their wages; take a look at David | | | | Brazilian who impressed the World with his |
| Beckham if you dont believe me. | | | | speed and goal-hungry attitude is not at the |
| | | | peak of his game anymore, although his move |
| Other contractual bonuses will also earn them | | | | to Milan seems to have revived him somewhat. |
| a fair amount. For example, many strikers | | | | Despite his declining form, Ronaldo remains |
| that are confident in their ability to play | | | | one of the central figures in todays soccer, |
| regularly and score will have contract | | | | as he has an established name and image for |
| bonuses for each goal, assist or for a total | | | | over a decade. |