Top 20 Richest Footballer in the World 2025 (+Net Worth)
Who is the richest footballer in the world in 2025? Who is the richest athlete in the world in 2025? Is any footballer a billionaire? How much is CR7 brand worth? How rich is Neymar in 2025? Also, How rich is Lamine Yamal? What is Leo Messi net worth? Who is the top-10 richest footballer in the world? Here GoalTheBall reveals the list of the top 20 richest footballers in the world at the moment.
Who is the No. 1 Richest Footballer in the World?
Neither Messi nor Ronaldo, in fact, among the professional football players Faiq Bolkiah is the richest person alive. Is Faiq Bolkiah richer than Ronaldo? Yes! Faiq Bolkiah is richer than Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, Mathieu Flamini, and all other football stars. How much does Faiq Bolkiah get paid? According to the latest reports, the Brunei national team captain earns around 35k US Dollars per year from his club contract. That’s a Lilliput-sum considering the salaries of the average European footballers let alone Messi or Ronaldo. In fact, Ronaldo’s daily salary is much more than that. How did Faiq Bolkiah get rich? Well, the alluded footballer belongs to the Royal Family of Brunei. Indeed, he is the nephew of the Sultan of Brunei. That’s why he is so rich. His net worth is estimated at US$20 Billion, one may wonder. We must mention that Bolkiah spent years at Chelsea and Leicester Academy during his youth.
Who are the Top 20 Richest Footballers in the World?
| Player Name | Net Worth | Nationality | Football Career Status | Major Sources of Wealth |
| Faiq Bolkiah | $20 Billion | Brunei | Active | Family Wealth Inheritance |
| Mathieu Flamini | $13.4 Billion | France | Retired in 2019 | Entrepreneurship |
| Leo Messi | $850 Million | Argentina | Active | Club Contracts, Endorsements, Business |
| Cristiano Ronaldo | $800 Million | Portugal | Active | Club Contracts, Endorsements, Business |
| David Beckham | $514 Million | England | Retired in 2013 | Club Contracts, Endorsements, Business |
| Ronaldo Nazario | $325 Million | Brazil | Retired in 2011 | Club Contracts, Endorsements, Investment |
| Neymar | $250 Million | Brazil | Active | Club Contracts, Endorsements, Business |
| Dave Whelan | $220 Million | England | Retired in 1966 | Business |
| Wayne Rooney | $207 Million | England | Retired in 2018 | Club Contracts, Endorsements, Business Investments, Football Manager |
| Karim Benzema | $200 Million | France | Active | Club Contracts, Endorsements |
| Zlatan Ibrahimovic | $190 Million | Sweden | Retired in 2023 | Club Contracts, Endorsements, Business |
| Kylian Mbappe | $180 Million | France | Active | Club Contracts, Endorsements |
| Gareth Bale | $145 Million | Wales | Retired in 2023 | Club Contracts, Endorsements, Golfing |
| Alexandre Pato | $145 Million | Brazil | Retired in 2023 | Club Contracts, Endorsements, Business |
| Thierry Henry | $130 Million | France | Retired in 2014 | Club Contracts, Endorsements, Football Manager |
| Paul Pogba | $125 Million | France | Active | Club Contracts, Endorsements |
| Zinedine Zidane | $120 Million | France | Retired in 2006 | Club Contracts, Endorsements, Football Manager |
| Andres Iniesta | $120 Million | Spain | Semi-Retired | Club Contracts, Endorsements |
| Mesut Ozil | $120 Million | Germany | Retired in 2023 | Club Contracts, Endorsements |
| Eden Hazard | $100 Million | Belgium | Retired in 2023 | Club Contracts, Endorsements |
| Raul Gonzalez | $100 Million | Spain | Retired in 2015 | Club Contracts, Endorsements |
| Philipp Lahm | $100 Million | Germany | Retired in 2017 | Club Contracts, Endorsements |
Richest Footballers in the World in 2025
As many fans don’t even know Bolkiah, who is the richest footballer among the European stars? The regular Premier League watchers may know this guy: Mathieu Flamini, former Arsenal midfielder. Is Mathieu Flamini a billionaire? Yes, he is a billionaire and also the 2nd richest footballer ever. Why is Flamini worth so much? Flamini co-founded GFBiochemicals in 2010 and currently holds a 60% stake in the alluded company. He is also the CEO of GFBiochemicals and the venture helped him make a net worth of around 10 Billion British Pounds or over 13 Billion US Dollars. Who is richer between Ronaldo and Flamini? In terms of football salary or endorsements, Flamini would be nowhere near Messi or Ronaldo. However, in terms of overall wealth, Flaimini has become much richer.
Well, let’s take a look at the real stars of the football world. In terms of the footballing income and recognition, nobody can beat Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. They are the undisputed champions of the game. Messi has a net worth of around US$850m and Ronaldo is also very close having his US$800m worth, according to the site “Celebrity Net Worth”. David Beckham is up next with around $500m net worth. Meanwhile, Ronaldo Nazario ($325m), Neymar ($250m), Dave Whelan ($220m), Wayne Rooney ($207m), Karim Benzema ($200m), etc follow with a net worth of over 200 million dollars.
