In the 2022/23 season only, football clubs from Europe`s Big Five leagues spent an eye-watering €5.7bn on transfers, almost 50% more than the season before. But besides paying a fortune to recruit new talent, Europe`s top-flight clubs give hundreds of millions of euros each month to players already in their teams. Some of them pay much more than others.
According to data presented by SportsLens.com, Paris Saint-Germain tops the list of European football clubs with €6.71 million average player salary in season 2022/23.
Only Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid Hit Over €6M in Average Player Salary
Professional football players are raking in huge sums of money in wages and sponsorship deals. The salaries at the top end of the game have skyrocketed in recent years, especially after the entrance of multinational corporations, oligarchs, and oil states as club owners.
Today, annual payrolls of Europe`s top-flight clubs are worth hundreds of millions of euros, with the figures growing each season.
Although far below football giants like Manchester City, Real Madrid, or Liverpool in terms of revenue, Paris Saint-German paid the highest average salary to players throughout the season. According to Capology data, the first-team players of the Ligue 1 club had an average net wage of €6.71 million, far more than any other European football club.
Real Madrid, the second-largest cash-generating club in 2022, ranked second on this list with €6.07 million in average player salary. Statistics show Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid are the only two European football clubs with an average player salary above €6 million.
FC Barcelona has the third highest-paid team this season. The Capology data show the first-team players of the Spanish football club earned an average of €5.41 million. Bayern Munich and Manchester City round the top five list, with €5.07 million and €4.78 million in average player salary, respectively.
Top Five Clubs Pay Their Players Almost €14M Per Week
Although Europe`s largest clubs generate hundreds of millions of euros in revenue each year, their annual and weekly expenses for player salaries are still shocking.
Statistics show Paris Saint Germain`s weekly payroll amounts to over €4 million, almost double that of Manchester City or Chelsea, and more than a jaw-dropping €208 million for the entire year.
Real Madrid`s total net salaries for the 2022/23 season is €139.6 million, or €2.68 million per week. Their rival FC Barcelona pays €2.29 million per week for player salaries or €119.1 million for the entire year. Bayern Munich and Manchester City follow, with €2.73 million and €2.2 million in weekly payrolls. The Capology data show these five clubs pay their players almost €14 million per week.