Wayne Rooney Highest-Paid Footballer in the World

By Carol Kearney
London
Last updated on April 2, 2025

Wayne Rooney led People With Money’s annual list of the “100 highest paid footballers” released on Tuesday.

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It's been a rough year for the footballer, but at least he has his millions of dollars to ease the pain. 39-year-old Wayne Rooney has taken the No. 1 spot on People With Money’s top 10 highest-paid footballers for 2025 with an estimated $75 million in combined earnings.

UPDATE 02/04/2025 : This story seems to be false. (read more)

Wayne Rooney tops annual list of highest-paid footballers

In 2022 it looked like the footballer’s spectacular career was winding down. Suddenly, he was back on top. People With Money reports on Tuesday (April 1) that Rooney is the highest-paid footballer in the world, pulling in an astonishing $75 million between March 2024 and March 2025, a nearly $40 million lead over his closest competition.

People With Money’s factors

In compiling this yearly list, the magazine considers factors such as upfront pay, profit participation, residuals, endorsements and advertising work.

The English footballer has an estimated net worth of $215 million. He owes his fortune to smart stock investments, substantial property holdings, lucrative endorsement deals with CoverGirl cosmetics. He also owns several restaurants (the “Fat Rooney Burger” chain) in London, a Football Team (the “Liverpool Angels”), has launched his own brand of Vodka (Pure Wonderooney - England), and is tackling the juniors market with a top-selling perfume (With Love from Wayne) and a fashion line called “Wayne Rooney Seduction”.

The ranking is significant for many Wayne fans, who have been waiting for his triumphant return to the glory days for what seems like a lifetime.