World Cup 2018: The 13 Highest-paid Soccer Players Competing in Russia

13. Antoine Griezmann, France

The Atletico Madrid forward has big-tournament experience coming into the World Cup. Griezmann helped France make it to the final round of the UEFA Euro 2016 tournament before losing to Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal side, and he ended up being one of the most impressive players in the tournament, winning the Player of the Tournament and scoring the most goals of any player. Now, Griezmann will be hoping he can get the French side just a bit further at the World Cup.

12. Gerard Piqué, Spain

Piqué knows what it takes to win a World Cup, having helped Spain take the trophy in 2010. This year, Piqué will be one of the elder statesmen of the team alongside Diego Costa, Andres Iniesta, and David Silva. Piqué brought in $20.8 million in 2017-18, including $3.3 million from endorsements.

11. James Rodríguez, Colombia

Rodríguez had a breakout tournament at the 2014 World Cup, winning the Golden Boot while scoring six goals and leading his team to the quarterfinal round. Rodríguez spun that incredible performance into a six-year, £63 million deal with Real Madrid, and now he plays for the German powerhouse Bayern Munich. Rodríguez earned $22.1 million for the 2017-18 year, and if Colombia wants another deep run in the World Cup, they’ll need a strong performance from Rodríguez.

10. Thiago Silva, Brazil

The Paris Saint-Germain central defender has helped his club win four of the last five Ligue 1 titles, and he’s hoping he can extend that to the World Cup. Silva helped Brazil make it to the final four of the 2014 tournament before the team fell apart and finished in fourth. This time around, Silva comes in after making $22.4 million, including $1 million in endorsements. 

9. Kylian Mbappé, France

While he’s only 19 years old, Mbappé has already made a fast rise through the soccer ranks, playing for Monaco before going on loan to Paris Saint-Germain for the 2017-18 season. Mbappé’s deal made him the second-highest paid player on PSG behind Neymar, and helped him earn $22.5 million for the year, including $1.5 million through endorsements. 

8. Angel Di Maria, Argentina

Di Maria will go from playing with one top superstar (Neymar) with his pro club to another one (Messi) with his national club in the World Cup. This year, Di Maria brought home $22.6 million between his salary and major endorsement deals, including from his top sponsor Adidas. 

7. Sergio Agüero, Argentina

Fresh off of a Premier League title with Manchester City, Agüero will try and help superstar Lionel Messi add the one thing missing from his amazing resume: a World Cup trophy. Agüero brought in $23.5 million for the 2017-18 year, including $6.5 million in endorsements, the biggest coming from his deal with Puma. 

6. Luis Suárez, Uruguay

Suárez bit off more than he could chew during the 2014 World Cup (awful pun intended) and in 2018 he’ll be looking to take his team deep into the tournament. Suárez earned a hefty salary with $19.9 million coming his way for 2017-18 at Barcelona, and his $7 million in endorsements gives him $26.9 million in earnings for the year.

5. Oscar, Brazil

Neymar’s fellow Brazilian teammate comes in at fifth among the World Cup soccer stars, bringing in $27.4 million this year in total earnings. Playing for Shanghai SIPG, Oscar may not get as much exposure as other fellow top stars, but he still brings in plenty of cash as one of the most talented players in the world. 

4. Paul Pogba, France

Playing for one of the most valuable soccer clubs in the world always helps on a list like this. The Manchester United midfielder brought home nearly $30 million for the 2017-18 season, including $25 million in salary and bonuses along with $4.5 million in endorsements. Pogba won Best Young Player at the 2014 World Cup, and he’ll be hoping to follow that up with a championship title for France in 2018. 

3. Neymar, Jr., Brazil

After playing alongside Lionel Messi with Barcelona, Neymar broke out on his own with Paris Saint-Germain. And while he hasn’t reached the success on the pitch with his new club just yet, he’s doing just fine off of it. Neymar brought home $73 million in salary and bonuses for the year, and his endorsements with Nike, Red Bull, Beats, and McDonalds helped put him third on the soccer earners list. Brazil is considered to be one of the favorites to win the World Cup, which would be Neymar’s first after helping his nation reach the semifinals in the 2014 tournament. Neymar also led Brazil to its first gold medal in soccer at the 2016 Olympics in Rio. 

2. Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal

Ronaldo has been overshadowing his rival Lionel Messi on the pitch by helping his club Real Madrid win three straight Champions League titles. This year, though, he’s playing second fiddle to Messi on the income rankings. Don’t feel too bad for Ronaldo, though: The ridiculously fit Real Madrid star brought home $61 million in salary and bonuses for the 2017-18 season, and his endorsements with companies like Nike and Herbalife—as well as his work on his CR7 jeans company—has earned him an astronomical $108 million in earnings. The focus now: Can he bring Portugal a World Cup win after leading the team to the 2016 Euro championship?

Also, with a goal on June 20 against Morocco in World Cup play, Ronaldo has now become the leading European international goal scorer in history.

Ronaldo is out of the World Cup, but he has a new team: The soccer star has moved to Juventus for $110 million in a transfer with Real Madrid. Read more about the deal here.

“The time has come to open a new stage in my life, that’s why I asked the club to accept transferring me,” Ronaldo said, according to the BBC.

1. Lionel Messi, Argentina

The Barcelona forward edged out his rival Cristiano Ronaldo for the first time on this list, partly because Messi signed a massive contract extension through the 2020-21 season. The new contract made Messi the highest-paid soccer player in the world on a week-by-week basis—he’ll earn $667,000 every seven days—and he brought home a $59.6 million signing bonus on the deal as well. Couple that with his sponsorship deals with companies like Gatorade, Adidas, and Pepsi, and you have yourself the highest-paid soccer player in the world.