MUMBAI: Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi has overtaken his long-time rival and Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo to be named as the world’s highest paid football player, newswire AFP reports.
The Argentinian is far ahead in the current season with a whopping $154 million in salary, bonuses and commercial revenue while Ronaldo is a distatnt second at $115 million.
For Messi, that adds up to an incredible $30,500 per minute pitch time this season considering that he has played in the La Liga, Champions League, the Spanish Cup and Supercup as well as played 4 international games for Argentina.
Paris Saint Germain’s Neymar is third in the list with $99 million.
During the 2016-17 season, Ronaldo had led the way with $107 million, while Messi’s earnings stood at $93 million.
Amongst managers, Manchester United’s Jose Mourinho continues to be the highest paid coach in the world with $32 million. He is followed by China’s Marcello Lippi, who earns $28 million. While Atletico Madrid’s Diego Simeone is third on this list with $27 million.
