At the age of 17, playing for Sporting CP, Cristiano Ronaldo earned 20,000 USD per season (522 million VND). Re-signing with Al Nassr at the age of 40, the superstar received 245 million USD per year (6,398 billion VND).

“How has C. Ronaldo’s salary increased over the years” is a topic that football fans are interested in and discuss a lot on WarmUp on the evening of July 11. Sports sites have reported that in the 2002-2003 season, at the age of 17, playing for Sporting CP (Portugal), he received a salary of 20,000 USD (522 million VND).

During the period 2003-2006, CR7 played for Man Utd in the Premier League, receiving 3 million USD per year (78 billion VND). From 2006 to 2009, the “Red Devils” paid him 10 million per season (261 billion VND). During his 6 years with MU, he scored 118 goals in 292 matches, winning 9 titles with the club, including one Champions League and three Premier League titles.

The Portuguese superstar moved to Real Madrid (Spain) in the summer of 2009 for a transfer fee of 97 million USD (2,533 billion VND) – a world record at that time. During the 2009-2012 period, he received a salary of 15 million USD per season (391 billion VND), increasing to 28 million USD per year (731 billion VND) in 2013-2018. During his 9 seasons with the Bernabeu team, C. Ronaldo became a legend, scoring 450 goals in 438 matches, winning four Golden Balls, four Champions Leagues, two La Ligas and two King’s Cups.

Wanting a new challenge, Cristiano Ronaldo moved to Italy to play for Juventus from the summer of 2018 to 2021. Here, the player received the “biggest” salary on the team – 35 million USD (914 billion VND). After three seasons, he played 134 matches in all competitions and scored 101 goals – a record in Juventus history.

At the end of August 2021, he became the center of world football when he returned to his “old home” Man Utd, receiving a salary of 35 million USD, similar to when he was at Juventus. However, in this reunion, he only stayed for a year and a half, scored 27 goals in 54 matches, and did not win any more titles.

In January 2023, the superstar joined Al Nassr Club (Saudi Arabia), with a “skyrocketing” salary of about 227 million USD (5,927 billion VND) per season – the highest in the world. On June 26, at the age of 40, the striker with the most goals in history (938 goals) renewed his two-year contract with Al Nassr (until 2027), earning 245 million USD per year (6,398 billion VND).

According to the Daily Mail, the 40-year-old striker can increase his income based on his achievements, including: 110,000 USD (2.8 billion VND) for each goal, 55,000 USD (1.4 billion VND) for an assist. In case Al Nassr wins the Saudi Pro League, C. Ronaldo will be awarded 11 million USD (287 billion VND), winning the title of the tournament’s top scorer will receive an additional 5.5 million USD (143 billion VND).

Right after CR7 signed a new contract, Marca newspaper attracted attention with an article titled Fans were shocked to discover that C. Ronaldo’s salary was higher than the entire UFC squad (UFC stands for Ultimate Fighting Championship, the top MMA martial arts tournament). Writer Sam pointed out the “unfair contrast” that angered the martial arts community: all fighters at UFC are estimated to earn a total of 218 million USD (5,692 billion VND) per year, while C. Ronaldo alone receives 245 million (6,398 billion VND).

“This public backlash raises important questions about long-term talent retention in MMA. If fighters continue to risk their health for relatively low salaries, the UFC may have difficulty attracting elite athletes,” Marca commented.

Currently, C. Ronaldo is the most influential face on social networks with 660 million followers on Instagram, more than 172 million on Facebook, nearly 116 million on X and YouTube UR Cristiano has 76 million subscribers. Hopper HQ, a company specializing in providing social network solutions in the UK, once said that the superstar earned 3.42 million USD (89 billion VND) for each advertising post on Instagram.

Thanks to his “huge” salary, C. Ronaldo has a regal life, owning many real estates, supercars, yachts, private planes and a collection of expensive watches. Spanish media reported that the superstar’s family recently had a long vacation in Mallorca, Spain, with an estimated cost of up to 30 million EUR (915 billion VND) – far exceeding what the super-rich usually spend on a summer vacation.