You know that ranking of the top 10 richest players in the world that circulates on the internet? Well, most people think it’s Cristiano Ronaldo or Messi at the top, but the answer is way more surprising. Faiq Bolkiah, a guy few know about, leads with around $20 billion in wealth. The difference is that his riches didn’t come from football, but from family inheritance — he’s the nephew of the Sultan of Brunei.

What’s interesting is to see how the ranking of the top 10 richest players in the world mixes people who are still playing with retirees. Cristiano has $500 million (built through sponsorships and business ventures), Messi with $400 million, and then comes Mathieu Flamini, a former Arsenal player, who became a billionaire after leaving football to start a biofuel company. Like, the guy made more money from business than from his salary as a player.

In 2025, salaries were still outrageous — Cristiano was earning $220 million a year at Al-Nassr, Neymar $110 million at Al-Hilal. But that’s annual income, not net worth. The ranking of the top 10 richest players in the world considers everything: inheritance, real estate investments, endorsement deals, all combined.

The most curious thing is that among active athletes, wealth doesn’t depend only on talent. It heavily depends on how each one manages their money off the field. Cristiano and Messi understood this well — hotels, gyms, image rights. Meanwhile, some players who earned a fortune in football lost everything due to poor management.

Clubs also jumped on this wave. Real Madrid, Manchester United, Barcelona — they’re practically corporations now. Worth billions, with global revenues, functioning like real companies. And the owners? Sovereign funds, Arab billionaires, wealthy families who see football as a strategic investment.

It’s like, football has really become a business. The top 10 richest players in the world aren’t necessarily the best on the field — it’s those who knew how to play better off it too.