Many people think that Cristiano Ronaldo is out of time, so he has to go to Saudi Arabia to play football. But there is a reality, CR7 is the highest paid athlete in the world in 2022, with 173 million pounds/year.

All the players in the top 10 highest-paid stars in Saudi Arabia at the moment are from European clubs. Topping this list is none other than Cristiano Ronaldo – the pioneer player to go to Saudi Arabia to play football.

The owner of 5 Golden Ball titles signed a contract with Al Nassr Club from the beginning of this year, with a term until 2025. He is receiving a salary of 173 million pounds per year, equivalent to 3.4 million pounds per week. According to Forbes magazine’s statistics, Ronaldo is the highest-paid athlete in the world in 2022. This year, the number 1 position on this list will probably be difficult to escape CR7’s hands.

Behind Ronaldo is his former Real Madrid teammate Benzema. The French striker’s annual salary at Al-Ittihad is 172 million pounds, only 1 million pounds less than Ronaldo.

Al-Hilal’s rookie Neymar ranked 3rd in the top 10, pocketing 138 million pounds per year. Recently,  Neymar also praised the Saudi Arabian National Championship and emphasized how quickly he adapted to the environment and life in this Eastern oil country. “This is a very interesting, exciting tournament and I am sure that you will be watching the tournament when we have so many big stars.

I had no difficulty adapting. I don’t speak Arabic, but after 6 years in France, my French is also very bad. I was happy to discover a new culture, to be welcomed so warmly. I am happy with my choice and calmly welcome the future.”

The remaining 2 members in the top 5 are N’Golo Kante (Al-Ittihad with a salary of £86m per year) and Riyad Mahrez (Al-Ahli – £44m per year).