Lionel Messi – $80 Million
Messi ended the 2017-18 season as the number one scoring player in the Top 5 European Leagues. He extended his contract with Barcelona to play with the club in 2020-21, and with an annual salary plus bonus of more than $80 million. This makes Messi the highest-paid footballer. Topping up this figure is a lifelong endorsement agreement with Adidas, in addition to other deals with Gatorade, Huawei, Pepsi, Ooredoo, and Hawkers. Meanwhile, in Nanjing, China, a theme park based on him called Messi Experience Park, is slated for opening, in 2020.