Summary
The 10 biggest contracts in football history have been revealed.
Erling Haaland’s new nine and a half year deal at Manchester City sees him shoot up the rankings.
Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe appear multiple times.
The money in football in the 21st century would’ve been out of the realms of possibility thirty, twenty or even 10 years ago. The riches that come in thanks to sponsorship deals and television rights mean that the players of some of the most elite clubs in the world are among the wealthiest in all of sport.
With salary caps a thing of fiction in most top leagues, clubs are just finding new ways to provide lucrative contracts, such as handing out deals that run for nearly a decade, like how Chelsea did with Cole Palmer. With such staggering wages going around nowadays, GIVEMESPORT have decided to list the 12 most expensive contracts based on the worth of their entire length, wage and bonuses that the sport has ever seen dished out.
12 Most Lucrative Contracts in Football History
Rank
Player
Club
Length
Value (£)
1.
Lionel Messi
Barcelona
2017-2021
464.3m
2.
Karim Benzema
Al-Ittihad
2023-2026
451.6m
3.
Cristiano Ronaldo
Al-Nassr
2023-2025
428m
4.
Erling Haaland
Manchester City
2025-2034
370.6m
5.
Kylian Mbappe
PSG
2022-2024
354.6m
6.
Neymar
Al-Hilal
2023-2025
276m
7.
Kylian Mbappe
Real Madrid
2024-2029
258.3m
8.
Neymar
PSG
2017-2023
233m
9.
Cristiano Ronaldo
Real Madrid
2016-2021
185.7m
10.
Cristiano Ronaldo
Juventus
2018-2022
185.7m
11.
Gareth Bale
Real Madrid
2016-2022
150.2m
12.
Paul Pogba
Manchester United
2016-2021
95.4m
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12
Paul Pogba
Manchester United – 2016-2021 – £95.4 million
An undeniable flop in his return to Manchester United, Paul Pogba’s performances and inconsistency were certainly not worth the near £100 million that the Red Devils shelled out for his contract. The Frenchman had developed in the United youth system but left for free to join Juventus. When he made his triumphant return, he was a player tipped to challenge for the Ballon d’Or.
History has shown that Old Trafford has not been the place for players to thrive in recent years, but Pogba didn’t help himself with his attitude, demands to leave, and consistent injury issues. Unfortunately for him, things have not improved since he left either, owing to a doping ban which he is soon to finish serving after having his sentence reduced on appeal.
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11
Gareth Bale
Real Madrid – 2016-2022 – £150.2 million
Gareth Bale wasn’t exactly the most beloved figure at the Santiago Bernabeu by the end of his time at Real Madrid, and his final contract, worth north of £150m, while he struggled for fitness, probably played a part in that. However, he still managed to do a fair amount during that time period.
At the top of his highlights came his double against Liverpool in the 2018 Champions League final, including one of the most remarkable goals ever scored in European football history via his mind-boggling bicycle kick. The perception of Bale may have been ‘Wales, golf, football,’ but the record books will show that in actuality, Los Blancos probably got everything they could’ve asked from the Welshman during his time at the club.
10
Cristiano Ronaldo
Juventus – 2018-2022 – £185.7 million
Despite already being well into his thirties in 2018, what Cristiano Ronaldo was still able to do at the top of the game made Juventus believe he was the missing piece of the puzzle that would finally help them lift the Champions League after years of falling just short.
They were willing to part with more than £185 million as a total package to convince the Portuguese superstar to make the move, and despite the fact Ronaldo continued to score goals, it was at the Allianz Arena where signs began to creep in that his superpowers were waning. He couldn’t guide the Old Lady to European glory, and the financial issues Juventus have found themselves in since probably make this deal a mistake in hindsight.
9
Cristiano Ronaldo
Real Madrid – 2016-2021 – £185.7 million
Deja vu. Another Ronaldo contract worth £185.7 million. And it won’t be the last time the marksman appears on this list, either.
When the iconic number seven signed this new deal at Real Madrid, he was at the peak of his powers. He was set to win back-to-back Ballon d’Ors and guide Madrid to three consecutive Champions League victories. Ronaldo was already well-established as the club’s greatest-ever player, despite a who’s who of legends to compete against. Of course, he didn’t see out his contract, leaving just two years into it, but Madrid were willing to make him a rich man well into the latter stages of his career had he stayed put.
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8
Neymar
Paris Saint-Germain – 2017-2023 – £233 million
The deal that saw Neymar move to Paris Saint-Germain appeared, on paper, to be the perfect storm. The Brazilian was desperate to step out of Lionel Messi’s shadow at Barcelona and prove that he was capable of being the best in the world. Meanwhile, the Ligue 1 giants were on the lookout for the superstar who could take them to European glory.
The goals of the two parties seemed to go hand in hand, but neither objective ever came to fruition. The closest the Parisians came to a Champions League title was their runners-up finish in 2020, and Neymar’s persistent injuries and lack of competitive spirit domestically harmed his chances of ever winning the Ballon d’Or. By the time the relationship came to an end, things had soured massively from both sides.
7
Kylian Mbappe
Real Madrid – 2024-2029 – £258.3 million
It was the worst-kept secret in football that Kylian Mbappe was eventually going to make the move to Real Madrid. Many expected the switch to happen earlier, but for reasons that will become apparent later on in this list, that didn’t happen. However, in 2024, the saga finally came to an end.
Since then, the Frenchman hasn’t exactly hit the heights expected of him. In his first few months, he was identified as the club’s biggest problem by manager Carlo Ancelotti and has been outshone by the other galacticos around him. Both parties will hope the forward hits his top form soon, and if he stays until 2029, Mbappe will pocket a cool £258.3 million in the Spanish capital.
6
Neymar
Al-Hilal – 2023-2025 – £276 million
If Neymar’s lucrative move to PSG can be considered a failure across all metrics, then his switch to Al-Hilal is even more so. The Brazilian became one of many big-name players to make the move to the Middle East in 2023, effectively giving up his career at the highest level.
Within just a few short games, the winger was sidelined with an ACL injury, and even upon his return, he has struggled to make an impact and found himself back on the sidelines. With his deal close to expiring, it seems Al-Hilal have little interest in renewing his contract, and a move to MLS seems to be on the cards – likely seeing Neymar forced to take a major reduction in pay.
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5
Kylian Mbappe
Paris Saint-Germain – 2022-2024 – £354.6 million
It was touched upon earlier, but this is the reason why a proposed move to Real Madrid didn’t happen two years earlier for Mbappe. Desperate to keep him in Paris, PSG offered everything but the kitchen sink to ensure he would agree to stay.
In addition to the reported £1 million-per-week wages that the striker would receive, there were rumours he would also have a say in the club’s transfer business and that he was the catalyst behind Leonardo Nascimento’s removal as the club’s director of football. Such a short-term deal also meant that it wouldn’t be long before Mbappe was allowed to converse with Madrid again, which is exactly how things played out.
4
Erling Haaland
Manchester City – 2025-2034 – £370.6 million
Nine and a half years. That is how long Erling Haaland’s new Manchester City deal is. The Norwegian will be 34 by the time it comes to an end, meaning that he has committed his prime years to the Cityzens and then some.
It is becoming more and more common for clubs to spread their deals over a far more substantial length of time in order to avoid financial fair play ramifications. However, the risk for players is that if things don’t go according to plan, they are locked into that deal with seemingly no escape. Haaland must be hopeful that City’s recent struggles will be a thing of the past sooner rather than later.
3
Cristiano Ronaldo
Al-Nassr – 2023-2025 – £428 million
With football at the highest level slowly but surely moving on from CR7, it was time for the Portuguese star to use his value as one of football’s most famous players to cash in and profit off his incredible name value. That’s what saw Al-Nassr fork out more than £400 million for a two-and-a-half-year contract for the then 37-year-old.
While he is yet to win the Saudi Pro League title, what Ronaldo has done has brought with him numerous other stars from the European game who have decided to follow the same path of riches that the iconic figure did. So, regardless of the numbers, the deal has absolutely been a success for Saudi Arabia.
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2
Karim Benzema
Al-Ittihad – 2023-2026 – £451.6 million
Having proved he could lead one of the biggest clubs in the world after Ronaldo left Real Madrid, Karim Benzema’s stock couldn’t have been much higher when he decided it was time to join his former teammate in the Middle East and swap Los Blancos for Al-Ittihad. The three-year deal was worth more than half a billion euros, but the way things have gone, it falls into the category of disappointment.
The fans have not taken to Benzema, criticising his attitude and work rate. The player himself was believed to want out and had a falling out with former manager Nuno Espírito Santo. Things have been looking a little better since then, and it seems as though the striker will see out his contract, but it certainly hasn’t gone the way many would’ve expected it to.
1
Lionel Messi
Barcelona – 2017-2021 – £464.3 million
The best players tend to be the ones who get paid the most. Therefore, it is only fitting that the greatest to ever lace up a pair of boots comes top of this list. But was it worth Barcelona paying all that money for Lionel Messi at that stage of his career?
The Argentine hadn’t been at his best, and the years of Los Cules dominating Europe were long behind them. The deal would ultimately contribute to the catastrophic financial situation the club is still reeling from now, and also prevented them from keeping hold of Messi when his contract expired. Still, they had to make the move they did in 2017. Messi was Barcelona, so letting him go at that stage would’ve been calamitous for other reasons. It was a real double-edged sword for the Catalan outfit that didn’t have a clear right or wrong answer.
