In 2022, Kylian Mbappé emerged as the highest-paid footballer courtesy of his contract with Paris Saint-Germain. This was after the French footballer turned down a transfer deal to Spanish giants Real Madrid and signed a three-year contract extension with the Ligue 1 champions, keeping him in the French capital until 2025.
At the time, Marca reported Mbappe would be earning £42.5 million ($51 million) per annum, in addition to his bonus of £153 million for staying at the Parc des Princes. What is more, he now also has 100 percent control of his image rights, the outlet reported.
It said it was the highest contract to be given to a player. In his last season at Barcelona, Messi received a £64 million annual salary. However, when he moved to PSG, he agreed to accept a huge salary reduction to £25.5 million, although this would increase to £34 million for the final year of his deal in Paris.
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PSG star Mbappe is in the news again after Saudi Arabian soccer (football) side Al-Hilal offered a record transfer fee of $332 million for his services. The team is also offering to pay the player a salary of $776 million for one year, according to cbssports.
The offer by Al-Hilal for Mbappé surpasses the career earnings of Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James, which is in the range of $531 million. James, who has spent over two decades in the NBA, joked about heading to Saudi when Mbappe’s deal was reported.
Mbappe was born in 1998 in Paris and was raised in Bondy, Seine-Saint-Denis. His father, Wilfried, is from Cameroon while his mother, Fayza Lamari, is of Algerian origin, and migrated to France. Mbappe was trained to be a professional football player by his father at AS Bondy where his father managed the club. He later moved to the French side of Clairefontaine Academy and started attracting a lot of French and non-French teams due to his extraordinary talent.
He left Clairefontaine Academy to play for Chelsea’s Under 11s team. He later moved to A.S Monaco. He became the youngest player to play for A.S. Monaco and helped the team to win the Ligue 1 league title in the 2016/2017 season along with the Coupe de France title.
In 2017, he was signed by PSG and went on to help the Paris club to win the league title. He made his French Senior side at the age of 18 during the Russia 2018 World Cup. In 2018, he was named the FIFA World Cup Best Young Player.
