Former Manchester United and Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo became the first big name to move to Saudi Arabia after he signed for Al Nassr in January 2023.
Since then, clubs in the Saudi Professional League have been splashing the cash in a bid to lure some of Europe’s best players to the Middle East.
Last summer, the likes of Karim Benzema, Neymar, N’Golo Kante, Roberto Firmino, Fabinho and Ruben Neves all signed for Saudi Arabian clubs.
It has been widely reported that the Saudi Arabian clubs managed to lure players away from European football due to their far superior financial power.
Ahead of the new season, the top 10 highest salaries from the Saudi Professional League have been revealed.
According to Capology, Ronaldo is the highest-earning player in Saudi Arabia, making a gross of €200 million per year.
The Portuguese’s salary is double of the next highest-paid players, former Madrid teammate Benzema and ex-Barcelona star Neymar, both are reportedly on €100 million per annum.
Former Premier League stars Riyad Mahrez, Sadio Mane, Kalidou Koulibaly, Aymeric Laporte, Aleksandar Mitrovic and Kante were all included in the list, as was Serbian midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic.
Here are the top 10 highest-earning players in the Saudi Professional League:
- Cristiano Ronaldo – Al Nassr – €200 million
- Karim Benzema – Al Ittihad – €100 million
- Neymar – Al Hilal – €100 million
- Riyad Mahrez – €52.5 million
- Sadio Mane – Al Nassr – €40 million
- Kalidou Koulibaly – Al Hilal – €34.7 million
- Aleksandar Mitrovic – Al Hilal – €25 million
- Sergej Milinkovic-Savic – Al Hilal – €25 million
- N’Golo Kante – Al Ittihad – €25 million
- Aymeric Laporte – Al Nassr – €24.5 million
This summer, the likes of Casemiro, Ederson, Alisson Becker and Kevin De Bruyne have all been linked with a move to Saudi Arabia.
