Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and the Most Expensive Football Contracts in History

• Lionel Messi is reportedly considering moving to Saudi Arabia at the end of his PSG contract
• The offer from Al-Hilal could see Messi get the most expensive contract in history
• Ronaldo has managed to remain well renumerated across his different clubs despite his age

News that Lionel Messi could possibly receive a whopping 400 million euros contract per year from Saudi Arabia giants Al-Hilal rocked the world on Tuesday night.

Messi's future at Paris Saint-Germain is becoming increasingly uncertain, with numerous outlets intimating that he will not renew his contract at the end of the season.

A move to Saudi has been considered and should it materialise, it will see him follow his archrival Cristiano Ronaldo who joined Al-Nassr at the start of the year.

Should Messi accept the deal as first reported by transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, then he will have the most expensive contract in football history. For perspective, 400 million euros per year translates to 13 euros per second.

Arsenal's last four highest-paid players after reports of new salary for Saka

Football

But given that we are miles away from realising that astronomical deal, Sports Brief takes a look at the current lucrative contracts.

1. Cristiano Ronaldo

Ronaldo's contract termination by Manchester United turned out to be a blessing in disguise, with Al-Nassr offering him a two-and-a-half-year deal reportedly worth 177 million euros per year, as quoted by Goal.

2. Kylian Mbappe

Mbappe finally put to an end his rumoured links to Real Madrid by agreeing to a three-year extension at Paris Saint-Germain. He was handed a lumpsum contract that will see him earn close to 630 million euros by the time the deal ends. This is exclusive of other payments like loyalty bonuses.

3. Lionel Messi

The seven-time Ballon d'Or winner agreed to new terms while at Barcelona in 2017. He penned down a four-year deal that saw him earn approximately 555 million euros before leaving on a free transfer in 2021, as quoted by Bloomberg.

Lionel Messi inches closer to leaving Paris Saint-Germain in the summer

Football

4. Neymar

The Brazilian is still the most expensive player to date after PSG forked out an excess of 222 million euros to prise him away from Barcelona in 2017. His five-year contract with an option of a further year was 267 million euros, as quoted by AS.

5. Cristiano Ronaldo

The Portuguese star makes a second entry into the list. His contract renewal at Real Madrid in 2016 saw the club agree to a massive payment of 220 million euros until 2021. He, however, left for Juventus in 2018.

6. Ronaldo -Juventus

Ronaldo, again. The Old Lady forked out a similar amount of what he was to earn at Real Madrid to secure his services.

7. Gareth Bale

Arguably the greatest British export ever, Bale matched his talents on the pitch with a hefty paycheck after joining Real Madrid from Tottenham Hotspur. He renewed his contract in 2016 for a further six years, making him the best-paid player in the world momentarily. As Planet Sports reports, his contract was worth 178 million euros.