Do you know who the richest soccer player in the world is? I bet most people think of Cristiano Ronaldo or Messi, but the answer is much more interesting. The person at the top of the wealth ranking is Faiq Bolkiah, a player who is practically unknown, with an estimated fortune of 20 billion dollars. Yes, 20 billion. The difference is that his wealth doesn’t come mainly from soccer—it comes from family inheritance. He is the nephew of the Sultan of Brunei.

What’s interesting about this story is that it shows how wealth and salaries are completely different things. While Ronaldo earns about 220 million per year at Al-Nassr (plus 65 million in sponsorships), he is far from being the richest soccer player in the world in terms of accumulated fortune. Messi has around 400 million, Ronaldo also, but Bolkiah is in a different league.

Now, there’s a case I find much more inspiring: Mathieu Flamini, the former Arsenal and Milan player. This guy left soccer and became a billionaire by founding a biochemistry company—GF Biochemicals, specializing in sustainable bioproducts. In other words, he built real wealth through business and innovation, not inheritance. That’s truly impressive.

What’s clear is that modern soccer is much more than a sport. It’s a billion-dollar business where image, sponsorships, investments, and financial decisions matter just as much as performance on the field. Ronaldo and Messi understood that—besides astronomical salaries, they have hotels, gyms, and contracts with global brands. Neymar also follows this logic.

And it’s not only players. The richest clubs in the world (Real Madrid with 6.6 billion, Manchester United with 6.5 billion) move absurd amounts of money. The owners do too—there is a Saudi sovereign fund with 700 billion invested in soccer. It’s literally a global industry.

In the end, the title of the richest soccer player in the world is curious, but what really matters is understanding that soccer has turned into a market where business, investments, and financial strategy determine who gets truly rich. It’s no longer just about playing well.