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What Is the Average Salary of a Male Soccer Player?
By David Thyberg, eHow Contributor
updated January 11, 2011
Salaries of soccer players depend on many different factors.
Soccer, or football as it is known outside the United States, easily ranks as the world's most popular sport. "Forbes" magazine writer Parmy Olson describes soccer as the world's most recession-proof sport, citing the massive profits generated by sponsorship and broadcast rights in European markets as well as the burgeoning soccer markets across Asia, Africa and the Americas. All this growth has contributed to rising salaries for professional players. The average salary of a male soccer player varies greatly, depending on a number of factors including the team, the league, the country and the status of the player himself.
MLS Salaries
The minimum player salary for Major League Soccer (MLS), which is the United States' highest level of competition, rose to $40,000 in 2010, according to the "New York Times." Even so, roughly 30 percent of MLS players hold developmental contracts rather than roster contracts. Developmental players earn either $12,900 or $17,700 per year, a far cry from the base salary guaranteed to roster players. The average salary for all MLS players in 2010 was $138,169, according to the "New York Times." However, the enormous contracts of a small number of elite players greatly distort this figure. David Beckham of the Los Angeles Galaxy enjoyed the league's largest salary in 2010, raking in $6.5 million in base salary alone. Players Thierry Henry and Rafa Marquez of the New York Red Bulls each earned over $5 million for the 2010 season. A handful of other star players had salaries in excess of $1 million in 2010, including Landon Donovan, Juan Pablo Angel, Nery Castillo, Julian de Guzman and Freddie Ljunberg.
- Major League Soccer
As of the 2008 season, Major League Soccer's average salary was $117,299. The median salary however in Major League Soccer was $55,000. In 2008, the highest salary was $5.5 million for David Beckham, and the second highest salary went to Cuauhtemoc Blanco at $2,492,316 – Not a part of the article; an insertion.
Top-Tier European League Player Salaries
Europe houses the world's top professional soccer leagues. The most prominent of these include the English Premier League, the German Bundesliga, the Italian Serie A and La Liga in Spain. These leagues feature some of the biggest and wealthiest franchises, with the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Barcelona, FC Bayern Munchen and AC Milan leading the way. The average salary in the English Premier League is over $2 million per season, according to Mark Scott of the "Business Week" publication.
A comparable salary range applies throughout the rest of Europe's top leagues.
The most skilled and famous players in European club competition often make between $10 million and $20 million per year in salary, excluding all the money they make from lucrative endorsement deals. CNN listed the top five highest-earning footballers for the 2009-2010 season. This list consisted of Portuguese winger Cristiano Ronaldo, Sweden's Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Argentinean Lionel Messi, Samuel Eto'o of Cameroon and Kaka of Brazil.
Lower-Tier European League Player Salaries
More modest player salaries exist in the lower divisions of the aforementioned powerhouse European countries as well as the other leagues in relatively small European soccer markets like Denmark, Greece, the Netherlands, Portugal and Russia. Still, most players in Europe tend to enjoy at least six-figure salaries that measure up favorably against the likes of the MLS and other non-European leagues.
Player Salaries Around the Globe
Soccer is a global game, and professional leagues operate in nearly every country. Salaries vary drastically depending on where players ply their trade. Players working in first-world countries tend to make much more than those who play in developing nations, though rare exceptions to this rule exist.
Read more: What Is the Average Salary of a Male Soccer Player? | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/info_7759060_ave...#ixzz1QoRm1tm6
By David Thyberg, eHow Contributor
updated January 11, 2011
Salaries of soccer players depend on many different factors.
Soccer, or football as it is known outside the United States, easily ranks as the world's most popular sport. "Forbes" magazine writer Parmy Olson describes soccer as the world's most recession-proof sport, citing the massive profits generated by sponsorship and broadcast rights in European markets as well as the burgeoning soccer markets across Asia, Africa and the Americas. All this growth has contributed to rising salaries for professional players. The average salary of a male soccer player varies greatly, depending on a number of factors including the team, the league, the country and the status of the player himself.
MLS Salaries
The minimum player salary for Major League Soccer (MLS), which is the United States' highest level of competition, rose to $40,000 in 2010, according to the "New York Times." Even so, roughly 30 percent of MLS players hold developmental contracts rather than roster contracts. Developmental players earn either $12,900 or $17,700 per year, a far cry from the base salary guaranteed to roster players. The average salary for all MLS players in 2010 was $138,169, according to the "New York Times." However, the enormous contracts of a small number of elite players greatly distort this figure. David Beckham of the Los Angeles Galaxy enjoyed the league's largest salary in 2010, raking in $6.5 million in base salary alone. Players Thierry Henry and Rafa Marquez of the New York Red Bulls each earned over $5 million for the 2010 season. A handful of other star players had salaries in excess of $1 million in 2010, including Landon Donovan, Juan Pablo Angel, Nery Castillo, Julian de Guzman and Freddie Ljunberg.
- Major League Soccer
As of the 2008 season, Major League Soccer's average salary was $117,299. The median salary however in Major League Soccer was $55,000. In 2008, the highest salary was $5.5 million for David Beckham, and the second highest salary went to Cuauhtemoc Blanco at $2,492,316 – Not a part of the article; an insertion.
Top-Tier European League Player Salaries
Europe houses the world's top professional soccer leagues. The most prominent of these include the English Premier League, the German Bundesliga, the Italian Serie A and La Liga in Spain. These leagues feature some of the biggest and wealthiest franchises, with the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Barcelona, FC Bayern Munchen and AC Milan leading the way. The average salary in the English Premier League is over $2 million per season, according to Mark Scott of the "Business Week" publication.
A comparable salary range applies throughout the rest of Europe's top leagues.
The most skilled and famous players in European club competition often make between $10 million and $20 million per year in salary, excluding all the money they make from lucrative endorsement deals. CNN listed the top five highest-earning footballers for the 2009-2010 season. This list consisted of Portuguese winger Cristiano Ronaldo, Sweden's Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Argentinean Lionel Messi, Samuel Eto'o of Cameroon and Kaka of Brazil.
Lower-Tier European League Player Salaries
More modest player salaries exist in the lower divisions of the aforementioned powerhouse European countries as well as the other leagues in relatively small European soccer markets like Denmark, Greece, the Netherlands, Portugal and Russia. Still, most players in Europe tend to enjoy at least six-figure salaries that measure up favorably against the likes of the MLS and other non-European leagues.
Player Salaries Around the Globe
Soccer is a global game, and professional leagues operate in nearly every country. Salaries vary drastically depending on where players ply their trade. Players working in first-world countries tend to make much more than those who play in developing nations, though rare exceptions to this rule exist.
Read more: What Is the Average Salary of a Male Soccer Player? | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/info_7759060_ave...#ixzz1QoRm1tm6
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