KERCHING!
Neymar has signed a world record Puma boot deal, following his exploits for PSG and leading the French giants to their first ever Champions League final.
He leaves his rivals in their wake, inking a contract worth a world-record £23million-per-year.
But who else makes a fortune wearing sponsored boots? Let SunSport give the biggest boot deals in football, and what these stars earn per year.
1. NEYMAR, £23M
The enigmatic Brazilian forward dropped Nike to join rivals Puma and was awarded the largest individual sports sponsorship contract in history.
It’s not known how long the deal will last, but his previous agreement with Nike was for 11 years and was worth half of his new Puma deal.
Neymar posted on social media: “I grew up watching videos of great football legends such as Pele, Cruyff, Eusebio and Maradona, who each played in Puma.
“For these reasons, from today onward, I have the honour to unite with the brand that helped the biggest legends of football become what they are.”
Neymar recently signed the biggest boot deal in historyCredit: Reuters
2. MESSI, £18M
The second footballer to become a billionaire (the first was Cristiano Ronaldo), Messi is now into the second spot on the boot deals of all time.
In 2017, the Barcelona legend signed an extension to his boot deal with Adidas – giving him a lifetime contract with the company.
He was the first footballer to release a sub-brand of Adidas boots – the Adidas Messi.
As the years pass, and when Messi finally hangs up his boots, that could be just as lucrative for the forward as the Air Jordan sub-band Nike created for Michael Jordan.
Lionel Messi has a sub brand of boots available through AdidasCredit: Facebook
3. RONALDO, £15M
Nike’s prize asset, Ronaldo is their top earner.
However, Neymar’s contract now dwarfs his by £8million,
But Ronaldo can take comfort his deal will pay out more than Neymar’s – being reportedly worth £780million over a lifetime.
CR7 is only the third athlete to sign a lifetime deal with Nike, along with Michael Jordan and LeBron James.
Cristiano Ronaldo has a lifetime deal with NikeCredit: Rex Features
4. MBAPPE, £14M
Nike’s poster-boy, last year Mbappe was subject to a bidding war between with his current sponsors and Adidas.
He penned a 10-year deal worth around £140million in 2019, which is believed to be active as long as he plays in a top-flight league.
The PSG superstar was reportedly buoyed to join Nike, following in the footsteps of his idol Ronaldo.
He is the one who could challenge Neymar’s position at the top in years to come aged just 21.
Kylian Mbappe has the potential to be football’s biggest earner in years to comeCredit: Splash News
5. BALOTELLI, £5M
In 2014, Italian golden boy Mario Balotelli was on top of his game against for AC Milan.
A key member of the Italian national team, he was the country’s best hope of glory.
So when his contract with Nike expired, Puma swooped with a 10-year deal worth around £5million-per-year.
Now at a crossroads in his career with Serie B side Brescia, he’s not as marketable as he once was.
Mario Balotelli receives £5m-per-year from Puma for wearing their bootsCredit: EPA
6. BALE, £4M
The Welsh wizard, who recently joined Spurs on loan and earns around £18million-per-year from Real Madrid.
And he has exclusive sponsorship deals with the likes of EA Sports, Lucozade and Adidas, to name just a few.
It’s his contract with the German sports manufacturers that is his most lucrative, however, earning Bale around £4million-per-annum.
It’s certainly enough to keep Bale in golf clubs.
Bale is still contracted to wear Adidas bootsCredit: PA:Press Association
7. GRIEZMANN, £3.5M
In 2015, Griezmann extended his boot deal with Puma to the tune of £3.5million-per-year.
In that time, he became a global superstar – leaving Atletico Madrid for Barcelona in a deal worth around £108million.
Last year, to celebrate Griezmann’s 10-year anniversary with Puma, they released his special boot – a limited edition Future 4.1 NETFIT Grizi priced at £229.
He was one of Puma’s headline players until Neymar came along.
Antoine Griezmann is one of Puma’s headline playersCredit: Reuters
8. POGBA, £3M
The Manchester United midfielder is well worth his £3million-per-year fee Adidas pay him.
Not only does he appear in almost every TV ad the brand brings to our screens, he’s also on every poster advertising the latest Predator boots.
His 10-year deal worth around £30million doesn’t expire till 2024.
Pogba was another Nike were desperate to add to their roster.
Paul Pogba is a poster boy for Adidas
9. VERRATTI, £2.5M
The PSG midfielder’s contract with Puma expired in 2017, at which point Verratti wore blacked out Puma evoTOUCH boots in training.
Eventually, he signed a massive deal with Nike – lacing up with a pair of the Hypervenom Phantom III’s.
It’s not known how long the deal is. However, £2.5million is not to be sneezed at.
Puma pay Marco Verratti £2.5m to wear their boots alongside PSG team-mate NeymarCredit: Icon Sport – Getty
10. SALAH, £2.5M
The Liverpool forward has become one of the most marketable faces in the game, especially in Africa and the Middle East.
He is sponsored by Adidas, alongside lucrative deals with the likes of Pepsi and Vodafone in Egypt.
It sees Salah wear the X18 football boots, and get paid extremely well for it.
That endorsement generates £2.5million-per-year.
Mo Salah shows off his Adidas boots in training Credit: Times Newspapers Ltd
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
