The Saudi Pro League – where footballers go to earn a ridiculous amount of money.
This summer has seen something incredible happen in the world of football with dozens of footballers swapping Europe for the Middle East to play their football.
It started with Cristiano Ronaldo following the 2022 World Cup last December.
Ronaldo’s relationship with Manchester United and manager Erik ten Hag had soured and a mutual split was the only solution. He was released from his contract and was free to join any club.
But which clubs would be willing to pay a 37-year-old astronomical wages for the next few years?
The answer? A club – and a league – that wanted to cause shockwaves in football.
Ronaldo predicts Saudi League’s future
At the start of this summer, the Portuguse superstar made what we all thought was an outrageous claim about the standard of the Saudi Pro League.
“If they are coming, big players and big names, young players, ‘old players’, they are very welcome because if that happens, the league will improve a little bit,” Ronaldo said.
“The league is very good but I think we have many opportunities to still grow. The league is competitive. We have very good teams, very good Arab players.
“And in my opinion, if they continue to do the work that they want to do here, for the next five years, I think the Saudi league can be a top five league in the world.”
It seemed a crazy claim at the time but Ronaldo knew what was about to happen. He was about to be joined by a host of top-quality players.
And that’s exactly what’s happened with Saudi clubs offering stars massive wages to tempt them to leave Europe for the Middle East.
It’s almost been difficult to keep up with the latest player to have signed for a Saudi club.
Well, with data from Planet Football, here are the top 10 earners in Saudi Arabia for 2023/24 and their annual salary.
10 Ever Banega – £9.1million
Ever Banega is 35 years old and really at the end of his career. He won his third Europa League trophy with Sevilla last season before calling it a day in Europe.
He has joined Al Shabab on a cool £9.1 million per year. While the midfielder will no doubt be delighted with that incredible salary, it’s unlikely he’ll be in the top 10 highest-paid players in Saudi Arabia come the start of his season.
9 Edouard Mendy – £9.4million (plus add-ons)
There was a time when Edouard Mendy was considered as one of the best goalkeepers in world football after helping Chelsea win the Champions League in 2021.
However, his stock has fallen dramatically in west London and was replaced by Kepa Arrizabalaga as the club’s No.1 for much of last season.
Rather than sit on Chelsea’s bench, Mendy has opted to move to Al-Ahli and pick up almost £10 million every year. Al-Ahli are preparing for just their second season in the top flight of the Saudi league.
8 Jota – £10million
Jota left Celtic for Al-Ittihad for £25 million this summer, and will earn £10 million per year at the Saudi club.
The 24-year-old spent two seasons in Scotland – one of which was on loan. He scored 28 goals in 83 appearances in all competitions and became a fan favourite at Celtic Park. He was signed permanently for just £6.4 million last summer so Celtic must be pleased with their business.
Jota must be pleased with the salary – while he’s also got some pretty high-profile teammates (more on that later…).
7 Ruben Neves – £15.6million
Ruben Neves’ move to Al-Hilal was game-changing.
Before the Portuguese midfielder moved to Saudi, it was largely players coming to the end of their career. But when the 26-year-old announced he was leaving Wolves for Saudi Arabia, everyone was shocked. It was one thing high-profile players one final payday before retiring but a player leaving the Premier League for Saudi Arabia at the peak of their career is another.
Al-Hilal paid Wolves £47 million for his services, with Neves recording a very emotional goodbye to supporters.
He won’t be crying when he receives his first paycheck, which is equivalent to around £300,000-per-week.
6 Roberto Firmino – £17million
Another player who said an emotional goodbye to his former club.
When Roberto Firmino said farewell to Liverpool, nobody knew his destination. After all, the 31-year-old is still more than capable of playing at the very highest level.
But after eight incredible years at Anfield, Firmino will be joining Al-Ahli – and getting a significant payrise during his three-year deal.
5 Marcelo Brozovic – £21million
At 30, Marcelo Brozovic was linked with a move from Inter Milan to Barcelona.
But why move to one of the biggest clubs in Europe when you could be paid more than £20 million per year? Brozovic has signed for Al-Nassr for a reported £15 million fee and will now play alongside Ronaldo at Al-Nassr.
4 Kalidou Koulibaly – £30million
A sizable jump in wages with Kalidou Koulibaly earning a crazy £30 million per year at Al-Hilal.
His 12 months at Stamford Bridge were pretty disastrous following his £34 million move from Napoli. Not only did he only manage 23 Premier League appearances during a wretched campaign for Chelsea but he saw his former club – where he’d been for eight years – win their first Serie A title in 33 years.
We’re sure the defender will comfort himself by earning £30 million every year.
Chelsea made a £14 million loss on the Senegalese defender.
3 N’Golo Kante – £86.2million
N’Golo Kante is in a bit of ‘no-man’s’ land in terms of wages in Saudi Arabia.
He’s in a completely different league to all those we’ve already mentioned, earning £50 million more than the fourth highest-paid player, Koulibaly. But Kante is a peasant compared to the two highest earners in the league.
Kante will be playing alongside Jota at Al-Ittihad having signed a three-year deal.
2 Karim Benzema – £172million
Kante will also be playing alongside the current Ballon d’Or winner, Karim Benzema.
The 35-year-old had the option to remain another year at Real Madrid but can you really blame him for signing a three-year deal at champions Al-Ittihad for a crazy £172 million!?
Many players would be hanging up their boots at the age of 35 but Benzema is going to be paid more than HALF A BILLION in the next three years. Not a bad retirement fund.
1 Cristiano Ronaldo – £173million
Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates a goal with his arms stretched wide in the Saudi Pro League for his current club Al-Nassr
The trendsetter. The catalyst. The highest-paid player in football history.
Is it a coincidence that Ronaldo is earning just £1 million more per year than Benzema? Who are we to say that Ronaldo would have been outraged if someone had come along and been paid more than him?
But as it stands, Ronaldo remains the best-paid player in the Saudi League – and world football.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner signed a two-year deal with Al-Nassr and has very much put the Saudi Pro League on the map.
So much so that a host of high-profile players have followed him there – as well as manager Steven Gerrard who will take charge of Al-Ettifaq.
Who will join Saudi Arabia next?
It’s unlikely to stop there. In fact, it definitely won’t stop there.
Could Neymar be the next superstar to head there? The Paris Saint-Germain man has been linked with Al Hilal.
Another player that looks set to leave Chelsea for Saudi Arabia is Hakim Ziyech. The Moroccan could be Ronaldo’s newest teammate at Al-Nassr.
While Neymar’s move to Al Hilal seems unlikely at this stage, Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva has also been linked with a move to the same club.
Meanwhile, both Saul Niguez and Wilfried Zaha have been touted for moves to join Ronaldo’s Al Nassr.
Who rejected a move to Saudi Arabia?
But not everyone is allured by the money being offered in Saudi Arabia.
A certain Lionel Messi turned down an insane £341 million offer to join Ronaldo’s rivals, Al Hilal. Instead, he opted to join Inter Miami. While he won’t be earning quite as much as £341 million in the MLS, we’re sure he’s financially stable in Miami.
The likes of Romlu Lukaku (Al Hilal), Son Heung-Min (Al Ittihad), Luka Modric (Al Hilal) and Jamie Vardy (Al Khaleej) have all rejected moves to Saudi Arabia and the attraction of a huge wage increase.
Also, manager Jose Mourinho also decided to stay at Roma instead of joining Al Ahli. He reportedly met with the club’s president but decided to stay in Serie A after leading Roma to the Europa League final last season.
