Here are the 10 highest-paid players in world football in 2021, with the study taking the players' total earnings into account. Lionel Messi is ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo, but where does Neymar rank?
Click through the gallery above to see the best-paid footballers, and what they earn annually, in 2021, with wages, bonuses and advertising deals considered, according to France Football!
French publication France Football recently published a list of the highest earners in the world, with Messi taking the No. 1 spot due to his astronomical annual salary.
According to the report, the FC Barcelona captain is paid €125 million (R2.1 billion) a year in wages, bonuses and sponsorships, although Ronaldo is not far behind his longstanding rival with annual earnings of €118 million (R2 billion).
Only Messi and Ronaldo earn nine figures over the course of a calendar year, but Paris Saint-Germain's Neymar does come close with his €98 million (R1.6 billion) in earnings per year.
Fourth on the list is Real Madrid loanee Gareth Bale, who returned to Tottenham Hotspur on a temporary deal this season, while former Barcelona skipper Andres Iniesta follows in fifth place.
The rest of the top 10 is completed by some more high-profile footballers, including Kylian Mbappe, who, at 22 years old, is paid a remarkable €32 million (R551 million) a year.
