The Real Madrid
star takes over from retired 2013 winner David Beckham at the top of our index,
with Samuel Eto'o, Wayne Rooney and Kaka rounding off the top five
Cristiano
Ronaldo has been named the world's richest footballer after topping the annual
list of players' net worth compiled by Goal.
The Real Madrid
superstar held off Barcelona rival Lionel Messi in the Goal Rich List 2014 with
an estimated wealth of €148 million.
The Goal Rich
List is collated by a team of analysts and takes into account all streams of
revenue for active footballers over the course of their careers.
Ronaldo
succeeds David Beckham, who led the way on the 2013 list but called time on his
playing career last May.
Only current
professionals are eligible with the earnings of more than 200 contenders
assessed before Goal's experts finalised the top 10.
Ronaldo has
enjoyed a remarkable 12 months in which his value to club and country has never
been more evident.
He scored all
four goals as Portugal beat Sweden in the World Cup play-offs, landed the 2013
Ballon d'Or and signed a record-breaking new five-year deal with Madrid.
Messi came in
second after inspiring Barcelona to the Spanish title and signing up for a
range of lucrative endorsements. It was a mixed year for the Argentinian,
however, who appeared in a Spanish court in September to testify over alleged
tax fraud relating to commercial contracts and lost his grip on the Ballon d'Or
after a year blighted by injuries.
Wayne Rooney
makes the top four on the list following Manchester United's decision to offer
him the biggest contract in British football history, worth €365,000 a week.
Neymar's
controversial transfer to Barcelona sees him rocket up the standings to sixth,
with his parents' €40m 'compensation' payment included Goal's figures due to
its game-changing significance.
The rest of the
list is made up of global superstars, who have accrued huge wealth over
significant spells at the top of the professional game.
Samuel Eto'o is
at number three, ahead of Rooney, thanks largely to the millions he earned at
Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala, with Kaka, Ronaldinho, Zlatan Ibrahimovic,
Gianluigi Buffon and Thierry Henry completing the top 10.
Thierry Henry's
glittering career has seen him collect winner's medals for the World Cup, the
Champions League, the Premier League and La Liga.
But the French
forward, 36, has not only been successful on the pitch, cashing in at the
height of his fame with lucrative endorsements for global brands such as Nike,
Renault and Gillette.
Henry moved
from Arsenal to Barcelona in 2007 for €20 million (£16m), signing a four-year
deal with the Catalan club worth €5.6m (£4.6m) a season.
France's
all-time leading scorer then eclipsed David Beckham as the highest paid player
in the MLS when he joined New York Red Bulls in 2010.
Although his
base salary in 2013 dropped to €2.7m (£2.2m), with bonuses Henry is still
estimated to earn €3.2m (£2.6m) per year playing for New York.
Off the field,
his wealth continues to grow as the public face of PUMA and he was central to
the launch of the sportswear company's new evoPOWER boot in 2014.
Henry also
promotes Red Bull and has a string of business and stock market investments.
His properties include a €6.8m (£5.6m) home in Hampstead, London, and a luxury
apartment in New York that cost €11.1m (£9.2m) in 2010.
The Goal Rich
List 2014
To find out how
we compiled the Goal Rich List 2014, check out our Rules of Engagement HERE.
1.
Cristiano
Ronaldo - €148m (£122m)
2.
Lionel
Messi - €146m (£120.5m)
3.
Samuel
Eto'o - €85m (£70m)
4.
Wayne
Rooney - €84m (£69m)
5.
Kaka -
€82m (£67.5m)
6.
The
Neymar family - €80m (£66m)
7.
Ronaldinho
- €78m (£64m)
8.
Zlatan
Ibrahimovic - €69m (£57m)
9.
Gianluigi
Buffon - €63m (£52m)
10. Thierry
Henry - €57m (£47m)
Mar 10, 2014
9:00:00 AM
Goal Rich List 2014- Rules of Engagement.
Everything you
need to know about how we have worked out our top 10 on this year's wealth
index for professional footballers
This list comprises a wealth index of current
and active professional footballers, as measured by their identifiable wealth.
Those who
qualify for the list include Fifa-registered professional players of all
nationalities in any professional league across the world - or registered
players currently without a club, but who are actively looking to sign for a professional
outfit.
Although we
have concentrated the published list on the top 10 earners in the world, a far
larger pool of players was considered before the final selection.
We attempt to
measure only identifiable assets including salaries, length of contract,
bonuses, endorsement and sponsorship deals, properties and other business
interests.
We have no
access to bank accounts and do not attempt to compromise player privacy in any
way. As a result, cash holdings in private accounts are not considered in this
research and so actual wealth may vary from the figures we have concluded.
Business
interests may include stakes in quoted companies. It is much more difficult
valuing stakes in private companies. We try, as a general rule, to base
valuations on the prevailing price/earnings ratio for a sector or an equivalent
quoted company. Business interests under the name of a spouse or other family
members cannot always be accounted for, but where this is possible these have
been taken into account.
Most of the
player information has been sourced from public and reputable sources. We have
also used the expertise and knowledge of a number of player agents, marketing
experts and club sources.
We have applied
typical national tax rates for high-earners.
Transfer fees - payments to players
With regards to
payments due to players following a transfer, we have worked on the premise
that young footballers can receive on average between 10-15% of any profit the
player's club makes on their transfer fee.
In the UK, very
few footballers tend not to receive a percentage of their transfer fee, although
this is negotiable on a player-by-player basis.
In Spain,
Netherlands and other leading European countries, these fees are more common
and are typically closer to 15% of fees received when they move to
higher-profile leagues for large figures. British-based players can earn lump
sums from transfers through their signing on fees.
Bonuses
The bonus
figures we have quoted are basic bonuses for team success, but don't include
individual signing-on fees, image rights or loyalty payments, unless otherwise
stated.
http://www.goal.com/en/slideshow/6709/1/title/the-goal-rich-list-2014#
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=tZ3c0h0spMg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=tZ3c0h0spMg#t=0
