In the world of football, one of the most interesting discussions goes around the way that the English Premier League dwarves everyone else financially. For example, it was announced in 2019 that the Premier League has managed to bring in a revenue of £4.8bn: far more than anyone else in the world. The logic, then, would dictate that the English clubs must have the financial muscle and capacity to totally outspend the rest of the world when it comes to wages. Is that the case, though? Not according to some sources.
Indeed, a new infographic by Findbettingsites shows that, despite record revenues, the Premier League is not quite paying the wages some assume. For example, the highest paid Premier League player listed on this top 20 listing is Paul Pogba of Manchester United. At around $29.5m/year, he is the highest paid player on this edition of the football wages listing.
The next listing on the infographic who plays in England (presently) is that of Sergio Aguero. Interestingly, for all of the talk of Manchester City being a ‘money club’, he is the only one on the list who is playing for the Blues. At around $23.4m, the only other City player on the list was that of Yaya Toure. The Ivorian, though, no longer plays for Man City.
Therefore, it’s interesting to see that on a list of the top earners in football, just four of the places were taken up by Premier League footballers – and only two of them are presently in the English game. So, for all of their revenue widening gaps, the Premier League is yet to see that represented at the very highest level of the game.
Where do the top earners play, then?
The interesting disparity is that, in the Premier League, the average wage is much higher. You are much more likely to see a player on huge sums of money in England who plays for a team fighting relegation. These sides often have played with an average weekly wage of $50,000/week – perhaps more. The Spanish La Liga, for example, has a much wider disparity.
For example, five players on this list all playing for or played for either FC Barcelona or Real Madrid. Another is Antoine Griezmann of Atletico Madrid. All of these players are among the highest paid players in the world: in La Liga, though, the teams at the bottom of the league cannot afford even a fraction of these wages.
The Premier League wins out not for paying the highest actual wages, but the highest average wages. For example, Cardiff City would easily outspend clubs like Levante or Eibar in the Spanish top-flight. La Liga’s top two, though, spend more money on wages than anyone else.
You could put Pogba and Aguero together, for example, and still not even make up what Neymar Jr. gets at Paris Saint-Germain, nevermind what Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo earn. The financial gulf in England, then, is from the bottom, not the top.
View the full infographic: https://www.betting-sites.uk.com/soccer-earnings/