Magician: Lionel Messi toys with the Zaragoza
defence
Lionel Messi earned a staggering £29.7million in the
last year, replacing David Beckham as the world's highest-earning
footballer.
A study by France
Football magazine found that the England midfielder had
finally been toppled after two years on the top spot, though he
stays above Cristiano Ronaldo in second place.
The £200,000 a week after-tax deal that Ronaldo signed when he
left Manchester
United for Real Madrid makes him the biggest earner by
football salary, but Messi's burgeoning commercial deals and a
£3.6m bonus for winning six trophies with Barcelona put him out in
front.
United star Wayne Rooney (right), arguably the best player in
the world today, does not reach the top 10, but his former
team-mate Carlos Tevez makes No 7 on the list.
The Manchester
City forward apparently earned £13.8m last year -
£266,000 a week - while Chelsea
midfielder Frank Lampard was just behind on £12.8m.
Jose Mourinho is the highest earning coach, with the Inter Milan
boss picking up £11.7m, while last year's No 1 Luiz Felipe Scolari
fell to third with £8.5m after Chelsea finally stopped topping up
his gold-plated contract with Uzbekistan side Bunyodkur.
Roberto Mancini jumped to second on £10.8m after taking the
Manchester City job in December.