The cash continues to flow in the world game with French striker Karim Benzema the latest player to be handed a bag of money to play football.
After bidding farewell to Real Madrid, Benzema has signed a two year deal worth a staggering US$214 million per year (~A$323.6m) to play for Al Ittihad in Saudi Arabia.
Perhaps the most impressive part of the contract is the fact that if it all goes well, there is an option to extend it for another season at the same rate, bringing the potential total value to US$643m (~A$972.3m).
While they say money can’t buy success, it certainly makes it a lot easier to achieve in football and Benzema will bring a packed resume to the Middle East.
But where does Benzema’s astronomical salary rank in terms of global sports stars?
Let’s take a look through the numbers and find out.
Cristiano Ronaldo – Football
Benzema is following in the footsteps of his former Real Madrid teammate Cristiano Ronaldo who made a dash to the Middle East when things fell apart for him at Manchester United.
Earning around €200m per year (~A$323.95m) would have made the move a bit more palatable as well.
His first season could have gone a bit better though.
The scariest part of both of these deals is that Lionel Messi could have surpassed both of them had he taken the Saudi offer instead of Inter Miami (and he still might).
Patrick Mahomes – NFL
If you want a scary comparison between the two sports, Ronaldo and Benzema’s salaries are about the same as the salary cap for an entire NFL team.
That payment ceiling hasn’t stopped some massive deals getting handed out though.
When the Kansas City Chiefs approached their quarterback in 2020 to lock him up long term, they made sure their superstar would get PAID.
His 10-year extension was worth US$477m in new money and had the potential to go up to US$503m (~A$760m) by the time it comes to an end in March 2032.
As hefty as the nearly $50m per year average seemed at the time, it’s already looking like the Chiefs have a bargain with several other quarterbacks surpassing the yearly average on shorter deals and the salary cap continuing to swell.
Lamar Jackson – NFL
NFL contracts occur in a fluid marketplace and they can change in a heartbeat, but at the time of writing Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens has the highest average annual value.
After a long and protracted debate, Jackson signed a five year deal worth up to US$260m (~A$393m) at US$52m per year.
Canelo Alvarez – Boxing
Boxers get paid obscene amounts to punch each other (and get punched themselves) but it’s hard to quantify their annual salary since it depends on how many bouts they take part in.
Streaming service DAZN (apparently pronounced “Da-Zone”) has allowed Canelo Alvarez to enjoy some level of financial certainty though, locking him into a five year, 11-fight deal that will pay him US$365m (~A$551.8m).
That averages out to $33.18m per fight or $73m per year for the man with a record of 53 wins from 56 fights (with two draws and a solitary defeat).
His ability to fight over five weight classes allows him plenty of flexibility to pick and choose his opponents over the life of this deal.
Karl-Anthony Towns and Devin Booker – Basketball
The NBA’s salary cap is as soft as you will see in sports with the limit treated more as a suggestion rather than a hard line.
However player contracts do have a set limit, not that the guys who earn the maximum amount are going to be shopping in the bargain bin anytime soon.
Depending on a player’s experience and level of success in the league, they can earn up to 35% of the team’s salary cap.
Towns and Booker are the most recent players to sign these “supermax” extensions earning them a cool US$214m (~A$338.5m) over four years.
Although because of the lengthy 82 game NBA season, these guys earn “only” $682900 every time they step on the court, although it does make multi-game suspensions quite costly.
Max Verstappen – Formula One
The Dutch maestro is quite literally lapping the field this season and he is being compensated accordingly by the energy drinks company that runs the F1 team.
It is no surprise that he is reportedly the highest paid driver in the sport, earning in the area of £42m per year (~A$78.9m).
Although it sounds like Max is here for a good time, not a long time.
It’s a reasonable assumption to make that the engineer on the other end of his radio might not miss him.
Aaron Judge – MLB
The big hitting outfielder for the New York Yankees smashed a home run on his nine-year contract extension with the Bronx-based outfit.
The Yankees are paying their star man US$360m (~A$544m) to keep wearing pinstripes and hitting baseballs out of the park.
And the best part of it all for Judge, baseball deals are fully guaranteed so he’s seeing every last dollar.
Nathan MacKinnon – NHL
Compared to some of the other North American sports leagues, hockey doesn’t quite bring in the same big bucks.
However Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon is hardly short of a buck with his eight year extension netting the 27-year-old just over US$100m over the life of the deal.
Maybe the extra $800k was for the exchange rate in his native Canada.
Not a bad reward for bringing the Avs the 2022 Stanley Cup.
Kalyn Ponga – NRL
One of the more protracted contract sagas in the NRL came to an end in April 2022 with the dynamic fullback signing a hefty extension with the Knights.
Ponga is now reportedly the highest paid player in the NRL, just ahead of Nathan Cleary and Daly Cherry-Evans.
The big question is whether or not he will return to the Sunshine State at the end of this deal.
Lance Franklin – AFL
Want to start an argument with an AFL fan?
Just ask them if Buddy’s 9 year, $10m deal with the Swans was worth it.
Injuries have prevented him from being fully effective over the last three seasons but he is still one of the more imposing figures in a forward line, winning his fourth Coleman Medal in 2017.
He is still yet to deliver the Swans a Premiership however but he’s still surpassing plenty of milestones with the Swans.