Ronaldo on £3.2m a week! The 12 highest-paid stars in the Saudi Pro League

The Saudi Pro League is renowned for the vast wages it pays footballers, but who are the highest-earning players in the competition?

European football may still dominate the modern game, but Saudi Arabia’s biggest league has become far more prominent in recent years.

While the Saudi Pro League’s standard is still a noticeable drop down from that of the Premier League, La Liga and Bundesliga, it has still attracted some of the biggest names in the game, seeing its reputation grow in the process.

Here are the 12 highest earners in the division, with the help of data from Capology.

12

Marcelo Brozovic (Al-Nassr)

€465k per week

Marcelo Brozovic enjoyed a strong career in Europe, spending his peak years at Inter and also reaching the 2018 World Cup final with Croatia.

Now 32, the midfielder is enjoying the autumn of his career with Al-Nassr, joining them from the San Siro in 2023 and registering 18 goal contributions (six goals and 12 assists) at the time of writing.

11

Aymeric Laporte (Al-Nassr)

€471k per week

There was a time when Aymeric Laporte was one of the Premier League’s most impressive centre-backs, proving to be a hugely influential player at Manchester City under Pep Guardiola.

However, his time at the Etihad ended last year, and like Brozovic, he traded European football for Al-Nassr, commanding a mammoth wage in the process – the equivalent of £390k per week.

10

N’Golo Kante (Al-Ittihad)

€481k per week

One of the most likeable footballers of the modern era, N’Golo Kante’s move to the Saudi Pro League arguably came as a surprise.

The former Leicester City and Chelsea title-winning midfielder is now plying his trade at Al-Ittihad, winding down in his career but not yet hanging up his boots for France. Could he bow out for his country at the 2026 World Cup?

9

Aleksandar Mitrovic (Al-Hilal)

€481k per week

Aleksandar Mitrovic is a player who opted for big wages in Saudi Arabia – an eye-watering €481,000 (£398,000) per week – instead of remaining in the Premier League with Fulham.

The Serb has enjoyed a productive time with Al-Hilal since joining from the Cottagers in 2023, scoring 60 goals so far.

8

Sergej Milinkovic-Savic (Al-Hilal)

€481k per week

The exit of Sergej Milinkovic-Savic from the European game came as one of the biggest surprises, considering he departed for Saudi Arabia while still at the peak of his powers.

The 29-year-old appears to be impressing at current club Al-Hilal. He currently takes home the same weekly amount as Kante and compatriot Mitrovic, while he already has a league title in Saudi Arabia under his belt, perhaps justifying his crazy wages for his team.

7

Ivan Toney (Al-Ahli)

€491k per week

Ivan Toney moved to the Saudi Pro League from Brentford during the 2024 summer window, ending months of transfer speculation.

The fact that the striker is playing in Saudi Arabia could hinder his chances of playing for England moving forward, and it remains to be seen if he will return to the Premier League at some point in the future.

Still, 8 goals in his first 16 matches for Al-Ahli represents a decent start at his new club, and if he is scoring goals, he may well remain in his country’s plans.

6

Kalidou Koulibaly (Al-Hilal)

€667k per week

Who else had forgotten that Kalidou Koulibaly had a brief and disappointing spell at Chelsea?

The Senegalese never adjusted to life in England after being a world-class performer at Napoli, and he decided to trade Stamford Bridge for Al-Hilal last year. A staggering €667,000 (£551,000) per week was seemingly too good to turn down for the defender, who is now 33 years of age.

5

Sadio Mane (Al-Nassr)

€769k per week

Sadio Mane has been part of a Liverpool exodus to the Saudi Pro League in recent years, with former teammates Fabinho, Jordan Henderson and Roberto Firmino all heading there.

Now the highest-earning ex-Reds player in the competition, the 32-year-old has shone for Al-Nassr, bagging 24 goals and 16 assists in 69 appearances.

4

Riyad Mahrez (Al-Ahli)

€1m per week

What City would give to have a peak-level Riyad Mahrez playing for them right now. The winger enjoyed five memorable years at the Etihad, winning the Premier League and Champions League among many other trophies, but he was another who headed to Saudi Arabia for a huge payday.

Mahrez is a teammate of Toney’s at Al-Ahli, where he has showcased his attacking class with goals and assists aplenty.

3

Neymar (Al-Hilal)

€1.9m per week

The Saudi Pro League’s signing of Neymar was one of the competition’s biggest statements of intent, with Al-Hilal snapping him up in 2023, acquiring the services of one of football’s biggest superstars over the past 20 years.

The Brazilian legend has recently recovered from a long-term injury absence, and he will be hoping to make up for lost time. It remains to be seen how badly the knee issue has affected him, but don’t back against him producing plenty more magic in the coming years.

2

Karim Benzema (Al-Ittihad)

€1.9m per week

One of the leading strikers of his generation, only Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Robert Lewandowski have scored more Champions League goals than Karim Benzema.

Having won all there is to win during an incredible career at Real Madrid, the Frenchman opted to join Al-Ittihad at the end of the 2022/23 season, where he has already notched more league goals this year than in his first campaign.

1

Cristiano Ronaldo (Al-Nassr)

€3.8m per week

It’s no surprise to see Ronaldo top the pile, is it? Let’s face it, he wouldn’t have had it any other way.

The all-time Portuguese great is earning a staggering €3,846,000 (£3.18m) per week at Al-Nassr, which is more than some people can only dream of earning in a lifetime.

In true Ronaldo fashion, he has continued to score goals at a relentless rate in the Saudi Pro League, approaching a total of 75 goals, not to mention chipping in with his fair share of assists for good measure. The biggest star in the competition rightly earns the most money.