Soccer players' earnings from their shoe endorsement deals.

Soccer stars' income from endorsement deals with shoe brands

Professional footballers can make a fortune if they have talent, training zeal, and team ability, and perhaps a bit of luck. Just by choosing the right shoe sponsor, they can earn millions. Let's see how much some players earn from different manufacturers:

This is not a text about decency or social envy. These numbers show the absurdity of modern professional football. If you're jealous of the earning potential of footballers, you can even start sewing your own football shoes and try your luck.

It's important to remember that professional careers have little to do with the joy of your own youth. The players who make money playing football have not only scored goals, but they may have also made sacrifices for their careers. But pity is unnecessary, as most people create their own destiny.

Here are some players who make a living by scoring goals, ideally with shoes that not only help them score goals but also bring millions of euros just by wearing them:

Enough to heat an entire swimming pool

The "Bild" newspaper recently shared some figures about the additional earnings of DFB players. It was revealed that Bayern players Jamal Musiala and Leroy Sané received around 6 million and 5 million euros a year from the US manufacturer Nike for wearing their shoes exclusively. Florian Wirtz, who plays for Leverkusen, can only earn less for his appearances in Adidas shoes.

It turns out that being at a big club is not enough, as Thomas Müller (Adidas) and Joshua Kimmich (Nike) can attest. They have to make do with 1.5 million euros a year. According to the report, Toni Kroos gives up a six-figure sum just to be able to play in an Adidas model from 2014. Because most professionals commit to wearing the latest model of their sponsor to boost their sales. And the companies have been binding top talents to themselves for years.

Before the 2006 World Cup, players in the national team were not allowed to choose their own shoe brand. They had to play in the tops of the official DFB sponsor Adidas. This caused trouble and resentment among Nike athletes like Miroslav Klose and Jens Lehmann before the home tournament.

Interestingly, it was less strictly enforced at other clubs. During the summer tournament in 2006, Lehmann and Klose had to watch as David Beckham, the spokesperson for the English team, earned millions for his on-field Adidas appearance, while he was actually sponsored by Umbro. Even in the Argentine World Cup-winning team of 1978, it was noticeable that almost all the players were working in Puma shoes, although Adidas was responsible for the rest of their professional attire. It's assumed that there was not even a used car back then.

Lionel Messi, who's an Argentine, World Champion, and currently the greatest player, can enjoy the luck of being born later. For his lifetime deal with Adidas, he's expected to earn several hundred million euros. However, it's unclear how much he earns exactly - around 21 million euros a year. Cristiano Ronaldo, a Portuguese World Champion, is said to receive 1 billion dollars for lifetime loyalty from Nike - or rather just 18 million euros per year.

However, let's not forget the real big players. They were almost all under contract with Puma. Whether it was the Dutchman Johan Cruyff, the Brazilian Pele, or the German Lothar Matthäus. And of course, the best of all: Diego Armando Maradona. It is known that his loyalty to the brand went so far that he made the Dutch Football Association intervene with the actual sponsor of the team, Adidas, so that Cruyff's specially made jerseys and pants at the 1974 World Cup could only have two stripes. The shoes, of course, were from Puma. How much he earned for this is not known. The same goes for Maradona, but it can be assumed that he spent the money. At least, that's what makes all the hard work worth it.

Currently, Puma shoes should also be on the feet of Brazilians Neymar and the Frenchman Antoine Griezmann for sales and goals. Neymar is said to receive around 27 million euros a year for this. Griezmann, on the other hand, is said to earn only 4 million euros a year. For his fellow countryman Kylian Mbappe, Nike is said to pay a good 16.5 million euros. The Englishman Jack Grealish is said to receive almost 12 million euros, also from Puma. But it doesn't seem like it's enough, as Grealish is not nominated for the upcoming European Championship. Norway, the home of Erling Haaland, missed the qualification for the major tournament. The almost 24 million euros a year from Nike might be a small consolation for the striker.

Did you know that Neymar changed from Nike to Puma in 2021? He did it not for the money in Herzogenaurach, but as a tribute to his inspiration, Pelé. It's heartening to know that there's still room for sentimentality in today's overwhelming madness.

Now, if we think about the flood of emotions, the fans who buy football-related goods play a crucial role. It's their consumption that enables such large sums of money to be made. However, many can't abstain, and it's due to addiction. In medicine, addiction is described as an uncontrollable desire for a particular state of experience. Purposeful thought is no longer in control of our actions.

In a nutshell, football is a drug. And the world is an addict. The ball's movement evokes intense emotional responses - almost to the point of irrationality. Our reason succumbs to these feelings, and people forget their personal identities. Even nations get swept up in this frenzy. It's impossible to make more money than from addiction.