Only one African appears on Forbes' Rich List of the 20 highest earning players in football, and he earns about five times less than the world's highest paid footballer, Cristiano Ronaldo.
Click through the gallery above to see the 20 highest paid players in football in 2016, according to Forbes.
The Portuguese remained the highest paid footballer for a fourth year running, earning an incredible $93 million (R1.2 billion) in basic salary, bonus payments and endorsement deals between 1 June 2016 and 31 May 2017.
He beat his longstanding rival Lionel Messi by $13 million (R168 million), with the Argentine pocketing $80 million (R1.03 billion), according to Forbes' rich list.
There is a massive $43 million (R556 million) gap between Messi and third-placed Neymar, who pocketed $37 million (R479 million) – $3 million (R39 million) more than Gareth Bale.
Manchester United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic completes the top five with $32 million (R414 million), which is $8.4 million (R109 million) million more than his United teammate Wayne Rooney in sixth place.
Luis Suarez ($23.3 million, R301 million), Sergio Aguero ($22.6 million, R292 million), James Rodriguez ($21.9 million, R283 million) and Paul Pogba ($21.2 million, R274 million) complete the top 10.
Angel Di Maria sits in 11th position, reportedly pocketing $20.5 million (R265 million), followed by Hulk, who earned $20.1 million (R260 million) at Shanghai SIPG in China.
Thiago Silva ($20 million, R259 million) and Eden Hazard ($18.9 million, R244 million) follow, before Yaya Toure appears in joint 16th spot. The former Ivory Coast international shares his position with Graziano Pelle, with both apparently receiving $18.1 million (R234 million), which is about five times less than what Ronaldo earned.
Cesc Fabregas ($18 million, R233 million), Robin van Persie ($17.8 million, R230 million), Gerard Pique ($17.7 million, R229 million) and Mesut Ozil ($17.5 million, R226 million) compete the top 20 highest earning footballers, as reported by Forbes.
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The US-based business magazine compiled their rich list of the world's highest earning footballers after looking through "team filings" and speaking with "player's agents, talent agencies, commercial sponsors and soccer experts in the US and Europe".
All figures include basic salaries, bonus payments and endorsement deals. Earnings listed are for the period 1 June 2016 to 31 May 2017.
Do you think more African footballers should be among the 20 best earning player in the game? Have your say in the comments section below.
