Top 10 Highest-Paid African Footballers in 2025

In Summary

• The 2025 list of Top 10 Highest-Paid African Footballers is dominated by stars in the Saudi Pro League and Europe, led by Riyad Mahrez, Sadio Mané, and Kalidou Koulibaly.
• Salaries have reached record highs, with Mahrez earning over €52 million annually, showing the financial power of Middle Eastern clubs.
• African players like Victor Osimhen, Mohamed Salah, and Achraf Hakimi continue to prove that talent from the continent is commanding global recognition and wealth.

Deep Dive!!

Lagos, Nigeria, Thursday, October 4— Let’s take a pause from the incredible on-field performances of the African players, since they are also smashing financial records with their salaries. African players are earning incredible salaries that rank them among the highest-paid in the world, especially in emerging leagues in the Middle East like the Saudi Pro League, which has proven their financial strength in recent years.

Footballers' salaries in 2025 have changed significantly compared to those over ten years ago. Previously, legends, including Didier Drogba and Samuel Eto’o, dominated the financial charts, but names that come up in 2025 include stars like Mohamed Salah and Riyad Mahrez.

In this article, we discuss the top 10 highest-paid African footballers in 2025, along with information on their teams and weekly salaries.

10. Edouard Mendy (Senegal / Al-Ahli)

Senegalese goalkeeper Edouard Mendy gained notoriety when he joined Chelsea and helped them win the UEFA Champions League title in 2021, which earned him the UEFA Goalkeeper of the Year and FIFA Best Goalkeeper in 2021. 

He also led Senegal to their first Africa Cup of Nations title in the same year, and achieved the feat of being the first goalkeeper to win both the UEFA Champions League and AFC Champions League (2025).

Mendy also won the FIFA Club World Cup with Chelsea and the Saudi Super Cup with Al-Ahli after his big-money move to the Saudi Arabian club in 2023, where he was also named Best Goalkeeper of the AFC Champions League.

At his current club, the 33-year-old earns approximately €211,538 per week and €11 million per year.

9. Iñaki Williams (Ghana / Athletic Bilbao)

Ghanaian forward Iñaki Williams has been a devoted and loyal member of the Spanish club, Athletic Bilbao. As of October 2025, the 31-year-old player has spent 13 years with the La Liga side, having joined their youth system in 2012 and progressing to the senior squad in 2015.

He became the first Black player to score for the team, which was a landmark moment in its history, and he owns the record for the most continuous appearances in La Liga, which is a string of 251 games. 

He has scored more than 100 goals for the squad and made more than 450 first-team appearances. Williams scored the winning goal that drove the team to clinch the Supercopa de España in the 2020–21 season and won the Copa del Rey in the 2023–24 season.

According to Capology, the Ghanaian star and captain of Athletic Bilbao earns approximately €219,231 per week, which amounts to €11.4 million per year.

8. Achraf Hakimi (Morocco / Paris Saint-Germain)

Moroccan sensation Achraf Hakimi has been a valuable member of the French team Paris Saint-Germain since 2021, from Inter Milan. It is safe to name Hakimi as one of the top right-backs in the world, holding the position so well that he helped his team win the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Super Cup in 2024-25.

The 26-year-old Moroccan right-back was selected for the tournament's best XI because of his incredible speed and accurate crossing during Morocco's historic 2022 World Cup semi-final run. Hakimi has won the Ligue 1 title in every season he played, along with the Coupe de France (2024-25), and the Trophée des Champions. Not forgetting that he holds the record for the all-time assist leader among defenders.

Achraf Hakimi earns about €253,846 per week, which amounts to €13.2 million annually.

7. Franck Kessié (Ivory Coast / Al-Ahli)

Ivorian centre midfielder Franck Kessié joined the Saudi Arabian club Al-Ahli in 2023 from the Spanish side, Barcelona, where he won the 2022-23 La Liga trophy. The 28-year-old was pivotal to the Ivory Coast’s victory in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, and since joining Al-Ahli, he has won the AFC Champions League in the 2024-25 season.

According to reports, Franck Kessié currently earns over €14 million annually, or €269,000 per week. Based on information from SALARY LEAKS, this is his gross pay with Al Ahli SFC.

6. Omar Marmoush (Egypt / Manchester City)

Joining Manchester City earlier this year from Eintracht Frankfurt, Omar Marmoush is a fast-rising star on the global stage. He was signed for a fee of €70 million, which appears to be well-deserved due to his achievements in the sport in the Bundesliga.

The 26-year-old became a Bundesliga Player of the Month, leading the league in assists and goal contributions in a particular season, scoring a notable goal for a crucial match against RB Leipzig, and securing a spot in the 2024-25 Europa League.

In his debut season at Frankfurt, he scored 16 goals in 37 appearances, an incredible feat that raised his profile and triggered interest from top clubs in the world.

Omar Marmoush earns an estimated £295,000 per week, which equates to an annual salary of approximately £15.3 million at Manchester City, according to Goal.

5. Mohamed Salah (Egypt / Liverpool)

We cannot conclude a conversation about African football and exempt Egyptian star Mohamed Salah, a player whose prowess has earned a lot of accolades. He joined the English Premier League side Liverpool in 2017, where his impact on the global stage has been felt intensely.

In Liverpool, he has won a Premier League title, a UEFA Champions League title, a FIFA Club World Cup, and multiple FA Cups and League Cups. When it comes to his individual awards, the 33-year-old cabinet has been really impressive. 

He holds the record for being the highest-scoring African in Premier League history, a four-time Premier League Golden Boot winner, and a recipient of numerous Player of the Year awards, including the PFA Players' Player of the Year. He also won the FIFA Puskás Award in 2018 and the African Footballer of the Year award twice. 

All these achievements seem enough to get Salah a huge paycheck at Liverpool. Mohamed Salah earns approximately £400,000 per week, which equates to about £20.8 million per year at Liverpool. This salary makes him the highest-paid player in Liverpool's history and a top earner in the Premier League.

4. Victor Osimhen (Nigeria / Galatasaray)

Nigerian star striker Victor Osimhen burst onto the footballing scene when he participated actively in the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup with Nigeria and earned the Golden Boot award at the tournament. He went on to polish his career with major achievements after joining Napoli in 2020, and led the Serie A side to a league title for the first time in 33 years in the 2022-23 season and won the Serie A Golden Boot (2022-23), and the Serie A Footballer of the Year award (2023). The 26-year-old star player also won the CAF African Footballer of the Year award in 2023.

After an incredible loan spell at the Turkish professional football club Galatasaray, where he emerged as the league’s top scorer with 35 goals in 39 official matches, Osimhen signed a permanent 4-year contract worth €75 million.

Osimhen sets the record for one of the highest-paid players in Turkish football history, earning an annual salary package of €21 million at Galatasaray, which breaks down to approximately €404,000 per week. This figure includes his €15 million base salary, a €1 million annual loyalty bonus, and €5 million for image rights. 

3. Kalidou Koulibaly (Senegal / Al Hilal)

Kalidou Koulibaly is a defensive powerhouse who plays in the centre-back position. He captains his national team, Senegal, and led them to winning the 2022 Africa Cup of Nations. He was named Serie A's Best Defender in 2019 during his time at Napoli and won the Coppa Italia in 2020. The 34-year-old defender was also a member of the Serie A Team of the Year four times and received the Golden Lion award for Senegal's best player. 

From Napoli, he secured a brief move to English side Chelsea in 2022, before joining Al Hilal, a Saudi Arabian club, for a transfer fee of around £17 million. Since joining, he has secured the Saudi Pro League and Saudi Super Cup.

Kalidou Koulibaly earns a reported salary of €667,308 per week and €34.7 million per year at Al Hilal, as of the 2025–26 season. This makes him one of the highest-paid players in the Saudi Pro League. 

2. Sadio Mané (Senegal / Al-Nassr)

Sadio Mané’s impact in football has been phenomenal, and it is no surprise that he is on this list. His most significant stint began after joining English side Liverpool, where he won the prestigious UEFA Champions League and Premier League titles. He also won the Premier League Golden Boot in the 2018-19 season and the Socrates Award in 2022 for his humanitarian work.

 He went on to join Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich and won the league with them. After spending about a year in Germany, the Saudi Pro League side, Al-Nassr, came calling and paid €30 million for the 33-year-old forward. It is also worth noting that Sadio Mané led his national team to victory in the Africa Cup of Nations in 2022 and has been named African Footballer of the Year twice.

Sadio Mané’s gross earnings at Al-Nassr stand at €769,231 per week, excluding bonuses, which amounts to €40,000,000 annually, according to Capology.

1. Riyad Mahrez (Algeria / Al-Ahli)

Finally, the top earner in African football for 2025 is Algerian right winger, Riyad Mahrez. He became renowned after joining English side Leicester City, where he scored 39 goals and provided 26 assists in 139 appearances and clinched the Premier League in the 2015-16 season, a feat that led to him being named the PFA Players' Player of the Year.

He quickly caught the attention of Pep Guardiola and Manchester City, and he was secured for £60 million. The 34-year-old won the UEFA Champions League and five Premier League titles with Manchester City between 2018 and 2023, before his move to Saudi Arabian club Al-Ahli. On the national level, he led Algeria to their second Africa Cup of Nations title and was named the African Footballer of the Year in 2017.

Riyad Mahrez's estimated annual salary is around €52.2 million, which translates to approximately £865,495 to €1 million per week.

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