- Cristiano Ronaldo earns more through Instagram than any other professional footballer, scooping a sum of £329,420,000.
- Neymar scores second place, with an average yearly Insta fee of £188,370,000.
- After Lionel Messi in 3rd place with an Instagram feed value of £130,728,000, Marcelo and Kylian Mbappe are 4th & 5th respectively – both players earn £48,048,000 per year from their Insta feeds, twice the amount of their current contracts.
Cristiano Ronaldo is officially the wealthiest footballer on Instagram, earning £329,420,000 per year on the platform, according to new findings.
The research, carried out by luxury clothing retailer Aphrodite, analysed follower count, value per post, and post frequency to calculate an estimated yearly fee for each player.
The Brazillian forward Neymar follows in second place, scoring a yearly ‘Insta-income’ of £188,370,000. He proves to be a hit online with fans, leaving the prolific Argentine Lionel Messi trailing behind in third place, with his Instagram feed valued at £130,728,000.
In fourth and fifth places, despite having only hit the back of the net 44 times and 96 times respectively, stars Marcelo and Kylian Mbappe both enjoy a fee worth celebrating — £48,048,000. Both players make more than double their current contract values via Instagram posts, showing how footballers can shoot to stardom on social media.
While Ronaldinho is undoubtedly one of the greatest names in the history of the game, his popularity off the pitch since retirement has yet to waver, with the Brazilian maverick raking in an impressive £41,652,000 per year from his Instagram.
The next superstar, James Rodriguez, is an icon in his native Columbia and with his recent switch to Everton his popularity has continued to skyrocket, with his Insta salary per year of £36,348,000
Further down the list, other noteworthy names feature, such as Liverpool forward Mo Salah, and the Egyptian maestro reels in an applause-worthy sum of £31,512,000.
Take a look at the full roundup below, and find out how your favourite players fare:
Top 10 Footballers Annual Instagram Earnings
Social media has been a key way for fans to keep up to date with their favourite players during the past year of restrictions placed on professional football. While some teams have resumed play, stadiums look set to remain closed for many spectators.
Commenting on the findings, Duncan McKenzie from Aphrodite said: “Many footballers have gained immense followings across social media platforms in recent years, and it acts as a way of appealing to a new generation of fans, too.
What happens off the pitch is constantly shaping the nature of the game, and new stars can be born from social media rather than scoring actual goals”.
Note:
- Information was gathered using Instagram analysis, and footballers chosen for the data sample were done so based on their follower count.
- Instagram average post value is calculated based on a value per follower of £0.005 based on data from Inkifi.
- Data was correct as of 11/01/2021
