Cristiano Ronaldo was the highest-earning soccer player in the world in 2025, being paid around 275 million U.S. dollars a year. The bulk of this sum came from on-field income, such as salary and bonuses. Meanwhile, Lionel Messi earned around 135 million U.S. dollars per year, with a larger share coming from off-pitch income. Who is better, Messi or Ronaldo? Messi and Ronaldo have been compared throughout their careers, with both players having exceptional ability. On the one hand, Ronaldo is the record goal scorer in the UEFA Champions League and holds many of the individual records in the competition. However, Messi has the one medal that Ronaldo could never win: the World Cup. The Argentinian lifted the famous trophy in 2022 after an exhilarating tournament, in which he scored seven goals. Ronaldo and Al-Nassr: an example of sportswashing? Ronaldo is undoubtedly the most well-known player to ever play in the Saudi Pro League, earning a salary more than most people can only dream of. Outside of soccer, Saudi Arabia’s investment in sporting events has been substantial, and human rights organizations have accused the country of using sport to whitewash – or sportswash – human rights abuses. Following his move to Al-Nassr, Amnesty International called on Ronaldo to bring attention to human rights issue in the country. Ronaldo, meanwhile, said he wanted to provide a different vision of the club and country.

Uruguayan Luis Suárez was the highest paid soccer player in Brazil's highest professional soccer league in 2023, with a salary of *** million Brazilian reals per month. Dudu from Palmeiras ranked second in the list.

This statistic shows the highest-paid soccer players in the Ligue 1 in France during the season 2020/2021. It displays that Neymar was the highest-paid soccer player, with a gross salary per month of **** million euros. The *** highest-paid players in the Ligue 1 championship were all PSG (Paris Saint-Germain) players.

As of 2023, Alex Morgan was the highest-paid female soccer player in the world, earning an estimated 7.1 million U.S. dollars a year. While this was a significant amount, it represented only a fraction of what leading male soccer players earn.

**Dataset Context: ** The dataset titled "Football Fortunes: Kaggle's Top 100 All-Time Most Expensive Players" is sourced from goal.com, a renowned football news and media platform. It compiles comprehensive information on the 100 most expensive football players in the history of the sport, based on their transfer fees and valuations.

Dataset Contents: The dataset comprises a wealth of data points. 1. Player Names: The names of the top 100 players who commanded the highest transfer fees. 2. Transfer Fees: The exact amounts paid by clubs to acquire the services of these players during their respective transfers. There are three columns; Base fee, Add-ons and Total fees. 3. Club from: The club who sold the player. 4. Club to: The club who bought the player. 5. Historical Context: Year of the transfers to provide historical perspective. 6. Position: Position of the player, either GK, Fullback, Defender, Midfielder or Forward.

Inspiration behind the Dataset: The goal.com team curated this dataset with the intent of shedding light on the mesmerizing world of football's financial side. The dataset aims to inspire football enthusiasts, analysts, and data scientists to explore and uncover valuable insights regarding player valuations, club dynamics, and the ever-evolving financial landscape of the sport.

Researchers and analysts can use this dataset along with: https://www.kaggle.com/datasets/hammadjavaid/top-500-most-valuable-footballers-20222023 to conduct studies on player valuation trends, analyze the impact of individual player performances on transfer fees, and study the influence of market forces on football's global economy.

Here are three major tasks that users can explore with the "100 All-Time Most Expensive Football Players" dataset: 1. Record Transfer fees over time 2. Which club spent the most? 3. Player Position and Market Valuation

Lionel Messi was the highest-paid MLS player in 2025, earning over 20 million U.S. dollars per year. Toronto FC's Lorenzo Insigne ranked second, with a guaranteed annual income of over 15 million U.S. dollars.

This dataset contains detailed information on 3,060 unique football/soccer players. Each entry provides a comprehensive profile of a player, including personal details, overall performance ratings, specific skills, and various attributes. The dataset is structured to offer insights into player capabilities, potential, and market value.

Below is a detailed description of the columns included in the dataset:

ID: Unique identifier for each player. Age: Age of the player in years. Height: Height of the player in centimeters. Weight: Weight of the player in kilograms. Preferred foot: The preferred foot of the player (e.g., Left, Right). Overall rating: The current overall rating of the player, reflecting their performance level. Potential: The potential rating indicating the highest possible overall rating a player can achieve. Best overall: The highest overall rating achieved in any position by the player. Best position: The position where the player performs best. Growth: The difference between the player's current overall rating and their potential. Value: The market value of the player, usually in currency (e.g., Euros). Wage: The weekly wage of the player. Release clause: The release clause value in the player's contract. Total attacking: The total score of all attacking attributes combined. Crossing: Ability to accurately deliver the ball from wide areas. Finishing: Ability to score goals in one-on-one situations. Heading accuracy: Accuracy of headers when trying to score or pass the ball. Short passing: Precision and accuracy of short-distance passes. Volleys: Technique and power in volley shots. Total skill: The combined score of all skill-related attributes. Dribbling: Ability to maintain control of the ball while maneuvering around opponents. Curve: Ability to curve the ball, typically used in shots and passes. FK Accuracy: Accuracy in taking free kicks. Long passing: Precision and accuracy of long-distance passes. Ball control: Ability to control and manipulate the ball effectively. Total movement: The combined score of all movement-related attributes. Acceleration: Quickness of reaching top speed. Sprint speed: Top speed a player can achieve. Agility: Ability to quickly change direction and position. Reactions: Quickness of responding to situations during the game. Balance: Stability and coordination while moving or under pressure. Total power: The combined score of all power-related attributes. Shot power: Strength and power in shots on goal. Jumping: Ability to jump vertically. Stamina: Endurance and ability to sustain performance over time. Strength: Physical strength and ability to win physical duels. Long shots: Accuracy and power in long-distance shots. Total mentality: The combined score of all mentality-related attributes. Aggression: Level of intensity and physicality in play. Interceptions: Ability to intercept passes and disrupt the opposition's play. Att. Position: Positioning intelligence when attacking. Vision: Ability to see and execute key passes and plays. Penalties: Ability to score from penalty kicks. Composure: Calmness and performance under pressure. Total defending: The combined score of all defending-related attributes. Defensive awareness: Understanding and anticipation of defensive responsibilities. Standing tackle: Effectiveness in making standing tackles. Sliding tackle: Effectiveness in making sliding tackles. Total goalkeeping: The combined score of all goalkeeping attributes. GK Diving: Ability to dive and save shots. GK Handling: Ability to catch and control the ball. GK Kicking: Accuracy and power of goal kicks. GK Positioning: Positioning intelligence in goalkeeping situations. GK Reflexes: Quickness of reflexes to make saves. Total stats: The overall total of all individual attribute scores. Base stats: The base statistics without modifiers or bonuses. International reputation: Reputation of the player on the international stage (e.g., 1 to 5 stars). Pace / Diving: Combined score of Pace attributes for outfield players or Diving for goalkeepers. Shooting / Handling: Combined score of Shooting attributes for outfield players or Handling for goalkeepers. Passing / Kicking: Combined score of Passing attributes for outfield players or Kicking for goalkeepers. Dribbling / Reflexes: Combined score of Dribbling attributes for outfield players or Reflexes for goalkeepers. Defending / Pace: Combined score of Defending attributes for outfield players or Pace for goalkeepers.

This dataset offers a rich resource for analyzing player performance, potential, and market value in the world of football/soccer. It can be utilized for vario...

Frankie de Jong is the highest-paid footballer in the Spanish top-tier soccer league during the 2023/2024 season. The FC Barcelona player is set to earn nearly 38 million euros in that season. Two Real Madrid players followed in the second place of the ranking.

In 2025, Inter Miami had the highest average player salary in Major League Soccer (MLS) at over *** million U.S. dollars per year. At the other end of the scale, the average player at Real Salt Lake earned around ******* U.S. dollars per year. Major League Soccer is the highest division of professional soccer in the United States.

Context

The datasets provided include the players data for the Career Mode from FIFA 15 to FIFA 22 ("players_22.csv"). The data allows multiple comparisons for the same players across the last 8 version of the videogame.

Some ideas of possible analysis:

• Historical comparison between Messi and Ronaldo (what skill attributes changed the most during time - compared to real-life stats);

• Ideal budget to create a competitive team (at the level of top n teams in Europe) and at which point the budget does not allow to buy significantly better players for the 11-men lineup. An extra is the same comparison with the Potential attribute for the lineup instead of the Overall attribute;

• Sample analysis of top n% players (e.g. top 5% of the player) to see if some important attributes as Agility or BallControl or Strength have been popular or not acroos the FIFA versions. An example would be seeing that the top 5% players of FIFA 20 are faster (higher Acceleration and Agility) compared to FIFA 15. The trend of attributes is also an important indication of how some attributes are necessary for players to win games (a version with more top 5% players with high BallControl stats would indicate that the game is more focused on the technique rather than the physicial aspect).

Content

• Every player available in FIFA 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, and also FIFA 22

• 100+ attributes

• URL of the scraped players

• URL of the uploaded player faces, club and nation logos

• Player positions, with the role in the club and in the national team

• Player attributes with statistics as Attacking, Skills, Defense, Mentality, GK Skills, etc.

• Player personal data like Nationality, Club, DateOfBirth, Wage, Salary, etc.

Updates from previous FIFA 21 dataset are the following:

• Inclusion of FIFA 22 data

• Inclusion of all female players

• Columns reorder - to increase readability

• Removal of duplicate GK attribute fields

• The field defending marking has been renamed defending marking awareness and includes both the marking (old attribute name - up to FIFA 19) and defensive awareness values (new attribute name - from FIFA 20)

• All data from FIFA 15 was re-scraped, as one Kaggle user noted in this discussion that sofifa updated some historical player market values over time

Acknowledgements

Data has been scraped from the publicly available website sofifa.com.

CONTEXT

The Football Player Dataset from 2017 to 2023 provides comprehensive information about professional football players. The dataset contains a wide range of attributes, including player demographics, physical characteristics, playing statistics, contract details, and club affiliations. With over 17,000 records, this dataset offers a valuable resource for football analysts, researchers, and enthusiasts interested in exploring various aspects of the footballing world, as it allows for studying player attributes, performance metrics, market valuation, club analysis, player positioning, and player development over time.

COLUMNS

1. ID: A unique identifier for each player.
2. Name: The name of the player.
3. Age: The age of the player at the time of data collection.
4. Photo: A link or reference to the player's photograph.
5. Nationality: The nationality of the player.
6. Flag: The national flag associated with the player's nationality.
7. Overall: The overall rating of the player's skills and abilities.
8. Potential: The potential rating representing the player's future development.
9. Club: The current club affiliation of the player.
10. Club Logo: A link or reference to the logo of the player's club.
11. Value (£): The estimated market value of the player in pounds (£).
12. Wage (£): The player's weekly wage in pounds (£).
13. Special: A numerical value representing the player's special abilities.
14. Preferred Foot: The player's preferred foot for playing.
15. International Reputation: A rating indicating the player's international reputation.
16. Weak Foot: A rating representing the player's weaker foot abilities.
17. Skill Moves: The number of skill moves the player possesses.
18. Work Rate: The work rate of the player.
19. Body Type: The physical build or body type of the player.
20. Real Face: Indicates whether the player has a real face representation.
21. Position: The player's preferred playing position.
22. Joined: The date when the player joined the current club.
23. Loaned From: The club from which the player is currently on loan.
24. Contract Valid Until: The date until which the player's contract is valid.
25. Height (cm.): The height of the player in centimeters.
26. Weight (lbs.): The weight of the player in pounds.
27. Release Clause (£): The release clause value of the player in pounds (£).
28. Kit Number: The player's kit number.
29. Best Overall Rating: The player's highest overall rating.
30. Year Joined: The year when the player joined the current club.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT We would like to acknowledge the original contributor https://www.kaggle.com/bryanb of this football dataset for providing the foundation upon which our cleaned and uploaded dataset is built.

Check out the link below for original dataset! https://www.kaggle.com/datasets/bryanb/fifa-player-stats-database?rvi=1

The datasets provided include the players data for the Career Mode from FIFA 15 to FIFA 23.

The data allows multiple comparisons for the same players across the last 8 version of the videogame.

Some ideas of possible analysis:

• Historical comparison between Messi and Ronaldo (what skill attributes changed the most during time – compared to real-life stats);
• Ideal budget to create a competitive team (at the level of top n teams in Europe) and at which point the budget does not allow to buy significantly better players for the 11-men lineup. An extra is the same comparison with the Potential attribute for the lineup instead of the Overall attribute;
• Sample analysis of top n% players (e.g. top 5% of the player) to see if some important attributes as Agility or BallControl or Strength have been popular or not acroos the FIFA versions. An example would be seeing that the top 5% players of FIFA 20 are faster (higher Acceleration and Agility) compared to FIFA 15. The trend of attributes is also an important indication of how some attributes are necessary for players to win games (a version with more top 5% players with high BallControl stats would indicate that the game is more focused on the technique rather than the physicial aspect).

Content

• Every player available in FIFA 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, and also FIFA 23
• 100+ attributes
• URL of the scraped players
• URL of the uploaded player faces, club and nation logos
• Player positions, with the role in the club and in the national team
• Player attributes with statistics as Attacking, Skills, Defense, Mentality, GK Skills, etc.
• Player personal data like Nationality, Club, DateOfBirth, Wage, Salary, etc.

Updates from previous FIFA 21 dataset are the following:

• Inclusion of FIFA 23 data
• Inclusion of all female players
• Columns reorder – to increase readability
• Removal of duplicate GK attribute fields
• The field defending marking has been renamed defending marking awareness and includes both the marking (old attribute name – up to FIFA 19) and defensive awareness values (new attribute name – from FIFA 20)

Source & License: https://sports-statistics.com/sports-data/

Premier League Payroll: Explore the salaries of top EPL players, from goalkeepers to strikers. Analyze wage differentials, positional trends, and national disparities. Discover insights into team investments and player valuations

Pearson’s r (r2), 95% CI and p-values for correlations between the positional difference of the players in the study sample and the associated positional difference in the normative data for total distance, high-intensity distance, sprinting distance, and number of accelerations.

Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chieffs was the highest paid player in the NFL in the 2025 season. The quarterback earned 80 million U.S. dollars in that season, the majority of which came from his lucrative contract worth a total of 50 million U.S. dollars annually.

The National Football League is one of the most lucrative leagues in the world, with big sponsorship deals and high TV ratings to match. The players within the NFL are compensated handsomely for being part of one of the biggest leagues in the world. The highest paid player in the NFL in 2025 was Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs, whose annual salary cap in 2025 was just over 66 million U.S. dollars. Quarterbacks earn the big bucks The quarterback is widely considered the most important role in football, given that the player is the middle of almost all possession on the offensive end and is the main decision-maker on the pitch. With such a decisive role, it is no wonder that quarterbacks dominate the list of highest paid players in the NFL. Although Patrick Mahomes led the way in terms of base salary in the league, Lamar Jackson was able to secure a more lucrative long-term deal. The Baltimore Ravens quarterback earned 86.3 million U.S. dollars through his salary, as well as an additional 14 million U.S. dollars bonuses and endorsements. Elsewhere, Aaron Rodgers, the quarterback with the seventh-highest passing yards in NFL history, earned nine million U.S. dollars off the field through sponsorship deals with the likes of Adidas and State Farm. High and lows of NFL salaries As with many American professional sports leagues, the NFL has a minimum annual player salary in place. In 2025, this annual salary stood at 840 thousand U.S. dollars, although the stars on every team are in line to earn much more. Meanwhile, the NFL salary cap for 2025 stood at just over 279 million U.S. dollars. This cap is put in place in order to maintain the competitive nature of the league and to stop franchises buying their way to success.

Earning a weekly salary of 450,000 euros in 2020, Oscar dos Santos Emboaba Júnior, better known as Oscar from Shanghai SIPG was the highest paid soccer player in the Chinese Super League. Globally, Lionel Messi ranked first with 96 million euros per year before taxes in 2020. Cristiano Ronaldo followed as second with 54 million euros, while Oscar took the tenth spot with 24 million euro.

Chinese top tier soccer league

The Chinese Super League (CSL), China’s premier professional soccer league, has contributed significantly to the booming sports industry. Since its introduction in 2004, the League has attracted millions of spectators to live matches and received over 300 million yuan in sponsorships each year from the likes of Shell, DHL, and Nike. In recent years, CSL has paid record-breaking fees for top player transfers, an act in line with the national goal - making China a global soccer powerhouse by 2030.

The soccer craze in China

In a country with 200 million soccer fans, football marketing is a thriving business in China. A 2019 survey found that the majority of Chinese soccer fans were inclined to pay for sports streaming platforms. Almost 74 percent of football enthusiasts streamed football matches at least once a week. Apart from CSL, Chinese fans closely follow the English Premier League, the UEFA Champions League, and the Spanish La Liga.

The statistic displays the best-paid soccer players in Latin American clubs as of March 2019. As of this point in time, the French soccer player André-Pierre Gignac, playing for the Mexican club Tigres UANL was the highest paid player in a Latin American club, with an annual income of approximately *** million U.S. dollars. The Chilean Eduardo Vargas, also playing for Tigres UANL, ranked second, with an income of ***** million dollars.

Lionel Messi was Inter Miami's highest-paid player in 2025, earning over 20 million U.S. dollars per year. Meanwhile, Messi's former Barcelona teammate Sergio Busquets earned around 8.8 million U.S. dollars per year.

In 2025, Diogo Gonçalves was Real Salt Lake's highest-paid player, earning around 1.8 million U.S. dollars per year. Meanwhile, Justen Glad earned roughly 1.3 million U.S. dollars a year.