In theory, Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe are the Real Madrid players with the highest salaries. But as revealed by AS newspaper, The Best title helped Vini surpass his French teammate to become the highest paid person at the Bernabeu.
After extending the contract in 2022, Vinicius’ salary has increased more than three times, from 4.7 million euros after tax per season to 15 million euros/year. This is the average number of the Brazilian player’s contract worth 75 million euros in 5 seasons (2022-2027). It is on par with Mbappe’s income, and significantly higher than Jude Bellingham’s 9 million euros after tax per season.
To compensate for Mbappe having to reduce his salary when leaving PSG, Real Madrid spent an additional 20 million euros in “signing bonus” for the French star. Divided equally over 5 years of the contract, this striker will receive an additional 4 million euros/year, meaning his real income is 19 million euros per season. But despite that, Mbappe is about to no longer be the highest paid player at the Bernabeu, after Vinicius won the title of The Best.
Because in the contract signed with Real Madrid in 2022, Vinicius’s representative Frederico Pena included special terms. Accordingly, the Brazilian striker’s salary will be adjusted to increase incrementally each time he wins the Golden Ball or The Best. Specifically, The Best title in 2024 will help Vini receive a salary of 20 million euros/year after tax in the remaining two seasons of the contract, 2025/26 and 2026/27.
Vinicius surpasses both Mbappe and Bellingham in terms of income at Real Madrid.
The important thing is that if the former Flamengo player is honored again in 2025 in the individual award categories, even just appearing in the Top 3, his salary will continue to increase. But looking at the present, that possibility is very large. Because Vinicius is still one of the brightest stars in European football.
Despite Mbappe’s presence, Vini still maintains an important role at Real Madrid. He is sharing the team’s top scorer position with Mbappe, having 13 goals together despite playing 200 minutes less (1,639 compared to 1,887). And without further ado, Vini is also the Real Madrid player most likely to compete for the biggest individual title in 2024, not Mbappe.