Michael Essien’s net worth, wife, achievements, age education, and more

Michael Essien’s net worth, wife, achievements, age education, and more

Lewis Injai
updated at April 12, 2023 at 8:00 PM

In football, few captivated us from the early 2000s through to 2014, like Michael Essien. Though now retired and has settled into the role of a coaching staff, at the height of his career, Essien was every coach's dream come true, and every coach in the major European clubs expressed interest in working with him. So, how does all that success on the pitch relate to his monetary success? This article will discuss Michael Essien's net worth, age, wife, and much more, so read along.

Michael Essien’s net worth
Michael Essien at the 2019 FIFA Football Awards. Photo: Simon Hofmann
Source: Getty Images

At the time of his contract signing to join Chelsea in 2005, Essien was the most expensive African footballer at the time, and is now the richest footballer in Ghana, and also the richest footballer in Africa. So, what is Michael Essien's net worth? Stick around to find out.

Profile summary

  • Full Name: Michael Kojo Essien
  • Nickname: The Bison
  • Date of birth: 3rd December 1982
  • Place of Birth: Accra, Ghana
  • Age: 39 (as of April 2022)
  • Zodiac Sign: Sagittarius
  • Nationality: Ghanaian and French
  • Current Residence: Copenhagen, Denmark
  • Height in Centimeters: 178 Centimeters
  • Height in feet: 5'10"
  • Position: Midfielder
  • Years Active: 1998-2020
  • Current Club: FC Nordsjælland (coach)
  • Total career Appearances: 492
  • Total career goals: 53
  • Marital status: Married
  • Wife: Akosua Puni Essien
  • Net worth: $35 million
  • Instagram: @michaelessien
  • Twitter: @MichaelEssien
  • Facebook: @Michael Essien

Michael Essien's biography

Born in 1982 to Aba Gyandoh and James Essien, Michael began his football career at 16 after graduating from college with a local club called Liberty Professionals.

He made a name for himself at the 1999 FIFA U-17 World Championship with the Ghanaian U-17 National team. After that, European scouts noticed him, and he was called to try out for Manchester United.

Man United offered him a contract, but he was ineligible to obtain the necessary paperwork. Therefore, he considered joining the Belgian feeder Club Royal Antwerp, but his mother preferred him to move to France, where he joined SC Bastia.

Michael Essien’s biography
Over the last 10 years, Michael Essien has remained humble and stuck to his roots. Photo: @michaelessien
Source: Instagram

He played for SC Bastia from 2000 to 2003 before moving to Lyon from 2003 to 2005. He then obtained French Citizenship, before making a move to Chelsea in 2005.

Michael Essien's educational background

Unlike all football prodigies who leave the conventional education system for football academies or even leave Africa for Europe, Essien was always a humble and intelligent kid during his school days. Despite his immense talent, he remained in school till he graduated high school.

He attended Gomoa Nyanyano DC primary and JSS, before attending the prestigious Catholic School St. Augustine College, where he graduated.

What age is Michael Essien?

The ex-Chelsea star is 39 years old as of April 2020. Though retired from playing football, he achieved what many take a lifetime to achieve, within a short period, and at such a young age.

Michael Essien's net worth

With a net worth of $35 Million, Essien is amongst the wealthiest footballers list. Though most of his wealth was earned from his long-standing career in football, starting with the French club Bastia, and ending with the Azerbaijani club Sabail, part of it also came from endorsement deals. The most notable ones were the telecom giants MTN, Samsung and Pepsi.

It's also worth noting that at the peak of his earning career in 2012, Essien had an annual salary of $6,600,000 million while in Real Madrid, something that contributed significantly to his net worth.

Michael Essien's achievements

The Ghanaian star has had quite the success on and off the pitch. Below is a compilation list of all his major achievements throughout the years.

  • He was a member of the Ghana U-17 team that won bronze at the 1999 FIFA U-17 World Cup in New Zealand.
  • He was a member of the Ghana U-20 team that won Silver at the 2001 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Argentina.
  • He helped Chelsea win two English Premier League titles (2005/06 and 2009/10), Four FA cup titles, one League title, Two Community Shield Cup titles, and one UEFA Champions League title (2012).
Michael Essien’s achievements
Michael Essien's name is forever inked as one of the greats for Chelsea and Real Madrid, two of the most famous clubs he played in. Photo: @michaelessien
Source: Instagram
  • He won Chelsea's Goal of the Season award twice in the 2006/07 and 2008/09 seasons.
  • He won Chelsea's best player award for the 2006/07 season.
  • He was named to the CAF team of the year four times (2005, 2006, 2008 and 2009).

Michael Essien's teams

In his entire career, the ex-midfield star has played for a total of 9 teams and coached in one. Below is a list of all the teams he has been to.

Michael Essien’s teams
A compilation list of all the teams Essien has been to. Photo: UGC
Source: UGC

Who is Michael Essien's wife?

Essien is married to the British-Ghanaian citizen Akosua Puni Essien with whom they have two children together. They tied the knot in a secret wedding in London and have subsequently kept their marriage ultra-private.

In 2018, however, there were allegations of Essien cheating on her in the tabloids, and she had reportedly moved out of their house. Latest confirmations show they are still married and living together.

Akosua is a successful businesswoman. In 2017, she acquired the bankrupt Italian Serie B Club Como at an auction, at $268,000, which was $13,000 above the auction price.

Michael Essien's birthday party

Back In 2012, while on loan at Real Madrid, Essien had organized a celebration for his 30th party. He invited all his teammates to the celebrations, and out of the whole squad, only two attended. At the time, Real Madrid had the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Benzema and Ramos.

The whole issue didn't sit well with the then coach Jose Mourinho, who shares a personal relationship with the star, and he was left to console him. This is according to the book Jose Mourinho: Up Close and Personal by Rob Beasley.

Social media

The ex-midfield star-turned-coach has built quite a following online over the years.

He has an Instagram account under the name michaelessien with an impressive 1.5 million followers, and a Twitter handle with over 723k followers.

Michael Essien will always remain one of the finest and most successful footballers ever to have come out of Africa. If we translate his success on the pitch in terms of monetary value, then his net worth directly reflects that.

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Lewis Injai