We all know that football players make real money.
So much so, of course, that it’s pretty hard to connect with them.
in 2020, the average UK annual salary was £ 38,600. In the Premier League, the average salary is more than £ 60,000-a-week.
But was it ever like that?
Well, a great video from HITC Sevens has looked at the player with the Premier League in every season since 1992 so far.
To do this, they performed a detailed analysis to scan newspaper archives to reveal the reported player salary.
In some seasons several top earners had players signing contracts at various times during the campaign but have used the top earner at the end of each season.
Got it? Good.
We will look at the results:
1992/93 – John Barnes (£ 10,000-per week)
John Barnes was the first £ 10,000 a week player in England when he joined Liverpool in 1987 and stayed on that salary as we entered the time of his career. Premier League. At the time, the average annual salary of the Premier League was just £ 77,000. Barnes was on £ 520,000-a-year.
1993/94 – John Barnes (£ 10,000-per week)
1994/95 – Eric Cantona (18,000-per-week)
For most of the season, Barnes and Chris Sutton were the top £ 10,000-a-week partners but just before the end of the campaign, Cantona won an award with a British record deal.
1995/96 – Dennis Bergkamp (£ 25,000-per week)
Worth every penny as Bergkamp proved his doubts wrong over the next 11 years to establish himself as an Arsenal legend.
1996/97 – Fabrizio Ravanelli (£ 42,000-per week)
Sky Sports TV’s contract saw a rocket of players’ salaries and Ravanelli won a major contract after his £ 7 million move from Juventus to Middlesborough. He scored 31 goals in 48 games in all competitions that season so he was worth his £ 42,000 a week.
1997/98 – Alan Shearer (£ 34,000-per week)
After Ravanelli left the Premier League, the highest salary fell for the first time. It made Shearer, who joined Newcastle in 1996, now the top earner. It also remained the department’s best payout for next season.
1998/99 – Alan Shearer (£ 34,000-per week)
1999/00 – Roy Keane (£ 52,000-per week)
These days, Roy Keane is known for his punditry and it’s easy to forget how good he was. Earning more than £ 50,000-a-week before 2000 shows that.
2000/01 – Roy Keane (£ 52,000-per week)
2001/02 – Roy Keane (£ 90,000-per week)
Keane signed a new contract at Old Trafford to see him as the top scorer once again passing Sol Campbell and Juan Sebastian Veron.
2002/03 – Roy Keane (£ 90,000-per week)
2003/04 – Hernan Crespo (£ 94,000-per week)
The arrival of Roman Abramovich makes Hernan Crespo the first Chelsea player to win the Premier League title – and certainly not the last. Crespo scored 20 goals in 49 league games – not a bad return.
2004/05 – Frank Lampard (£ 98,000-per week)
Frank Lampard was one of the best midfielders in the world under Jose Mourinho and signed a new contract at Chelsea in the summer of 2004, valued at nearly £ 100,000-a-week.
2005/06 – Steven Gerrard (£ 100,000-per week)
After winning the Champions League with Liverpool, Steven Gerrard almost left for Chelsea. Instead, he stayed at Anfield and signed a new four-year contract.
2006/07 – Andriy Shevchenko (£ 118,000-per-week)
How did Shevchenko pay his salary of £ 118,000 a week? With just four goals in 30 league games in the 2006/07 season. Oh my God.
2007/08 – John Terry (£ 135,000-per week)
John Terry came to a big new deal for himself in the 2007/08 season as he established himself as one of the best defenders in world football.
2008/09 – Robinho (£ 160,000-per week)
And now comes Manchester City ‘s money Robin Robinho scored 14 goals in 31 Premier League games in 2008/09.
2009/10 – Carlos Tevez (£ 250,000-per week)
Carlos Tevez replaced Robinho at the Etihad – earning a quarter of a million pounds a week. Unsurprisingly, he retained the highest league winner’s honor for the remainder of his contract.
2010/11 – Carlos Tevez (£ 250,000-per week)
2011/12 – Carlos Tevez (£ 250,000-per week)
2012/13 – Carlos Tevez (£ 250,000-per week)
2013/14 – Wayne Rooney (£ 300,000-per week)
Yaya Toure took on Tevez as the highest earner in the league but before the end of the season, Wayne Rooney awakened a new contract worth £ 300,000-a-week. He remained a player with the Premier League until his departure.
2014/15 – Wayne Rooney (£ 300,000-per week)
2015/16 – Wayne Rooney (£ 300,000-per week)
2016/17 – Wayne Rooney (£ 300,000-per week)
2017/18 – Alexis Sanchez (£ 350,000-per week)
What did Manchester United think? The Red Devils made Sanchez the top earner in the league by passing Paul Pogba’s contract. Sanchez controlled just three goals in 32 Premier League games during his nightmare at Old Trafford.
2018/19 – Alexis Sanchez (£ 350,000-per week)
2019/20 – David of Gea (£ 375,000-per week)
David de Gea was once the best keeper in the world but is it worth £ 375,000-a-week right now? He may be overpaid but has been an outstanding servant to the club.
2020/21 – Gareth Bale (£ 560,000-per week)
Bale is no longer a permanent Premier League player but the Spaniard earns £ 560,000 a week from Real Madrid. Tottenham are reportedly paying just 40% of that for their loan period – even then they feel like they are overpaid!
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