Forbes magazine has come up with its annual list of the world's highest-paid football players. This year, Manchester United's newest and most celebrated entrant, Cristiano Ronaldo, has taken the pole position in the list. He has surpassed Lionel Messi, who was on top of the 2020 list.
Antoine Griezmann of Atletico Madrid and Man United's goalie David De Gea have dropped out of the list, while Andres Iniesta has climbed up in the top 10 list.
Cristiano Ronaldo, who made a stunning return to Manchester United - the club that he played with from 2003 to 2009 - was also able to sell the highest number of Man Utd jerseys. Ronaldo makes a whopping 55 million dollars in endorsements. Only three other athletes, viz. Roger Federer ($90 million), LeBron James ($65 million), and Tiger Woods ($60 million) are ahead of CR7.
Salary-wise, Lionel Messi is ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo, and so is Neymar Jr. Messi decided to quit FC Barcelona and join PSG as his boyhood club (FCB) was not able to pay his wages.
List of Top 10 Highest Paid Footballers For 2021
| Sr No. | Player Name | Salary (In Millions) | Endorsements (In Millions) | Total Pay (In Millions) |
| 1 | Cristiano Ronaldo`(Manchester United) | $70 | $55 | $125 |
| 2 | Lionel Messi (Paris Saint-Germain) | $75 | $35 | $110 |
| 3 | Neymar Jr (Paris Saint-Germain) | $75 | $20 | $95 |
| 4 | Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain) | $28 | $15 | $43 |
| 5 | Mohammed Salah (Liverpool) | $25 | $16 | $41 |
| 6 | Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich) | $27 | $8 | $35 |
| 7 | Andres Iniesta (Vissel Kobe) | $31 | $4 | $35 |
| 8 | Paul Pogba (Manchester United) | $27 | $7 | $34 |
| 9 | Gareth Bale (Real Madrid) | $26 | $6 | $32 |
| 10 | Eden Hazard (Real Madrid) | $26 | $3 | $29 |
The Forbes list of highest-paid players also includes Andres Iniesta, who plays in the Japanese League.
Paris Saint-Germain has the most number of players on the list (three), followed by Manchester United and Real Madrid, both of whom have two players each.