Neymar’s proposed Al Hilal wages compared to Cristiano Ronaldo & Karim Benzema
- Neymar is the subject of considerable interest from Al Hilal
- The PSG forward could become the latest big name to move to the Saudi Pro League this summer
- Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema are two of the highest earners in world football
When money was particularly scarce during his childhood, Neymar would share the same mattress as his parents and sister.
Neymar's father described the "low social quality neighbourhood" in which he raised his son as "a dumping ground, where the entire city threw their garbage". It wasn't until Neymar Jr signed his first professional contract that the family moved out of Praia Grande.
From the age of 16, Neymar has been his household's main breadwinner. The money has poured in at an increasing rate over the subsequent years as the Brazilian starlet became the world's most expensive player.
His best years on the pitch may be behind him but Neymar could earn another pay rise after Al Hilal tabled a gargantuan offer for the Paris Saint-Germain forward.
Here's what Neymar stands to earn and how the eye-watering sums compare to the other grossly over-paid individuals in the Saudi Pro League.
Neymar's wages at PSG
Neymar is hardly on a pittance at PSG. The notorious resident in the Parisian suburb of Bougival - whose mayor described Neymar's frequent parties as "prodigiously annoying" - earns around £48.6m-per-year, more than £930,000-per-week.
However, he is only the second-best paid player in Ligue 1, behind his teammate in the capital Kylian Mbappe.
Al Hilal initially targeted Mbappe this summer, offering PSG a record-shattering £259m for the 24-year-old - who earns £61.9m per annum in Paris. PSG were all too happy to accept the offer but Mbappe refused to even meet with Al Hilal's representatives. Neymar, it appears, has come much further in the negotiations.
Neymar’s proposed Al Hilal wages
A transfer fee of €80m (£69.1m) has been floated by Al Hilal for PSG's injury-prone 31-year-old. Figures vary on the potential salary for Neymar but Santi Aouna has reported a sum in the region of €100m (£86.4m) per annum.
For context, Neymar stands to earn the equivalent of Harry Kane's transfer fee to Bayern Munich every 12 months.
Across his six seasons at PSG, Neymar missed 119 matches through injury, including the final three months of the 2022/23 campaign. Neymar sustained ankle ligament damage in a bonkers 4-3 victory over Lille last February, which may prove to be his final appearance for PSG.
Neymar combined with Mbappe for the opening goal before tapping in PSG's second of the match. Lille midfielder Benjamin Andre clattered into the Brazilian shortly after the half-time interval. After briefly trying to play through the pain, Neymar was carried off on a stretcher. The combination of brilliance and brittleness would serve as a fitting epilogue to his frustrating time in Paris.
READ MORE ON THE UNBELIEVABLE WAGES ON OFFER IN SAUDI ARABIA
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Karim Benzema's Al Ittihad wages
As a sign of his plummeting reputation among the game's elite, Neymar failed to make the shortlist for the 2022 Ballon d'Or. Karim Benzema won the award but moved to Saudi Pro League champions Al Ittihad at the start of the summer influx of stars.
Benzema is thought to be earning an obscene £172.77m-per-season after penning a three-year deal. Rather than riches, Benzema claimed that religion was behind his move to Saudi. "It's where I want to be," he said. "It's important for me to be in a Muslim country, where I feel people [are] already like me."
A nine-digit payslip - more than double Neymar's proposed wages - can't hurt though.
Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr wages
News of accelerated negotiations for Neymar's move to Al Hilal broke after the Saudi giants lost the first piece of available silverware of the season to Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr - as knee-jerk reactions go, it would certainly be an expensive one.
Ronaldo scored twice in the final of the Arab Club Champions Cup to claim his first trophy since moving to Saudi Arabia last winter.
After publicly severing ties with Manchester United ahead of the World Cup, Ronaldo was lured to the Pro League thanks in no small part to the outrageous offer of £177.1m-per-year.
Neymar shouldn't feel too disheartened to earn less than half Ronaldo's salary as the prolific Portuguese forward is the highest-paid athlete across any sport (per Forbes). Neymar ranked 12th in the world at the start of 2023 but could jump a few places if he does move to Al Hilal.
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