Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo has once again claimed the top spot on Forbes’ list of the highest-paid footballers for the 2025–26 season, becoming one of three players in the top 10 currently playing in Saudi Arabia.
This marks the sixth time in the past decade that Ronaldo has led Forbes’ rankings, coming just over a week after Bloomberg announced that the 40-year-old had become football’s first billionaire.
With combined on- and off-field earnings estimated at $280 million, Al Nassr’s Ronaldo earns more than double that of second-placed Lionel Messi, whose $130 million comes largely from off-field endorsements rather than his playing role at Inter Miami.
French former Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema ranks third with annual earnings of $104 million, largely thanks to his lucrative contract with Saudi side Al Ittihad. Senegalese forward Sadio Mane, Ronaldo’s teammate at Al Nassr, is the third Saudi-based player in the top 10, earning an estimated $54 million and placing eighth.
Compared to last year, the number of Saudi club players in the top 10 has fallen by one following Neymar’s departure from Al Hilal in January to return to Santos in Brazil. Neymar had earned $110 million in 2024–25 but now reportedly earns just $38 million, mostly from sponsorships.
Despite the financial clout of the English Premier League — whose clubs spent a record £2.6 billion ($3.5 billion) in the summer transfer window — only two players from the league feature in the top 10: Manchester City’s Erling Haaland in fifth and Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah in seventh.
Spain’s La Liga, however, boasts the most representatives in the top 10, including three Real Madrid stars: Kylian Mbappe (fourth), Jude Bellingham (ninth), and Vinicius Jr (sixth). Barcelona’s teenage sensation Lamine Yamal rounds out the list in 10th place with $43 million.
Forbes stated that “combined, the world’s ten highest-paid footballers are set to earn an estimated $945 million during the 2025–26 season.”
