Samuel Eto'o is the highest-paid player in world football.
Photo: Australian News Channel Pty Ltd
Star Cameroon striker Samuel Eto'o has topped the list of the world's highest-paid footballers, with Spain-based superstars Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo sitting in ninth and 10th placed on the list respectively.
Eto'o is the sport's best paid, according to Spanish newspaper Marca, earning 20 million Euros ($24.6m) per year with his Russian Premier League club FC Anzhi Makhachkala.
Paris St Germain forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic was second, with an annual salary of 14.5 million Euros ($17.8m), followed by Manchester United's Wayne Rooney and Manchester City duo Yaya Toure and Sergio Aguero.
Argentine playmaker Dario Conca is the surprise inclusion, earning 10.6 million Euros ($13m) from his Chinese Super League club Guangzhou Evergrande to rank eighth above Barcelona's Messi and Real Madrid's Ronaldo.
Spain's generous tax rates could be behind the relatively low placings of Messi and Ronaldo on the list, with pair widely regarded as the two best players in world football.
Top 10 highest-paid footballers in the world
1. Samuel Eto'o (20 million Euros)
2. Zlatan Ibrahimovic (14.5 million Euros)
3. Wayne Rooney (13.8 million Euros)
4. Yaya Toure (13 million Euros)
5. Sergio Aguero (12.5 million Euros)
6. Didier Drogba (12 million Euros)
7. Fernando Torres (10.8 million Euros)
8. Dario Conca (10.6 million Euros)
9. Lionel Messi (10.5 million Euros)
10. Cristiano Ronaldo (10 million Euros)