If you ever have the opportunity to watch a soccer game, the moment of pure magic is when the ball hits the back of the net. That’s what fans pay to see, and clubs depend on their star strikers to provide these decisive moments.
But how much are soccer players paid per goal? Are they directly rewarded for their capacity to beat the goalkeeper? The answer is not as simple as it might seem.
While scoring goals is useful, players are not paid per goal in soccer. Instead, they are paid based on salaries, bonuses, and performance incentives that are based on more than goals. However, some players, especially top forwards, have lucrative goal-based bonuses.
Let’s break it all down.
- How salaries for players are structured
- How goal-scoring bonuses work (with case studies)
- Whether paying per goal is the way to go—or if it’s counterproductive
- Performance incentives clubs use instead
The Myth of Getting Paid Per Goal
Players do not receive a set amount for every goal they score, which is one of the popular misconceptions. If that were true, then some high-scoring players would be getting ridiculous amounts of money, while goalies and defenders would be vastly undervalued.
And, because soccer contracts are structured around a base salary and performance incentives instead, there is far less room for news of a deal to leak.
When Lionel Messi’s jaw-dropping Barcelona contract was leaked in 2021, the world got a look at just how much money there is in elite soccer.
Messi earned more than €550m from Barcelona between 2017 and 2020, more than €4m per goal on average, a mind-boggling figure that illustrates the financial windfall of being one of football’s greats.
How Soccer Players Are Paid
Before getting into per-goal pay, first, it needs be understood how player pay works.
Unlike in sports such as basketball or American football — in which contracts often cover explicit performance incentives — soccer contracts are more comprehensive.
Base Salary: The Earning Foundation for Every Player
All professional players receive a base salary that is determined by negotiation on the following factors:
- Their skill level and reputation
- The club’s financial power
- Market demand (transfer value)
For example:
- Lionel Messi’s last Barcelona contract paid him €42 million per season (before taxes).
- Roberto Firmino at Liverpool earns around £180,000 per week (roughly £9.4 million per year).
- Marta, one of the greatest female players ever, earns $400,000 per year with Orlando Pride—a fraction of what top male players make.
Performance bonuses: Goals come into effect
Though players do not receive a direct salary per goal, many have bonus clauses linked to scoring. These payments are in addition to their base salary and come when they reach certain milestones.
For instance:
- Messi’s contract in Barcelona, which ran until 2021, reportedly included financial incentives for scoring goals, although actual amounts were never made public.
- One of the best headers in the game, Sergio Ramos, a defender, had bonuses for goals, despite not being an attacker.
- Roberto Firmino’s contract with Liverpool includes incremental payouts for every season’s goal score (more on that later).
But the takeaway is: Bonuses are supplementary — not the primary source of income. There are only a few players that are paid to win games—not to score.
SEE ALSO | Do Professional Soccer Players Get Paid After Retiring?
Do Soccer Players Get Bonuses Per Goal? (Real Examples)
Most contracts are private, but some details have emerged over the years. Here are the most prominent instances of goal-based bonuses in soccer:
Liverpool Roberto Firmino Bonus Structure (2021)
One of the most transparent goal-bonus systems in soccer belongs to Firmino, Liverpool’s Brazilian forward. His contract includes:
| Goals in a Season | Bonus Per Goal |
|---|---|
| 1-5 goals | £25,000 (~$33,000) |
| 6-10 goals | £45,000 (~$60,000) |
| 11-15 goals | £65,000 (~$87,000) |
| 16-20 goals | £85,000 (~$114,000) |
| 20+ goals | £100,000 (~$134,000) |
- He finished the 2017-18 season with 27, so his final 7 goals cost him £100,000 per goal.
- That’s another extra £700,000 (~$940,000) purely for those late-season hits.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s Bonuses for Derby Matches
Ronaldo’s agent Jorge Mendes dropped a hint that CR7 had special bonuses for scoring in big matches, such as:
- El Clásico (vs. Barcelona)
- Manchester Derbies (against Man City)
- UEFA Champions League Knockout Stage
Exact figures are unavailable, but reports indicate he earned six-figure bonuses for critical goals in these games.
Goal bonuses for a defender? You bet.
Sergio Ramos: A Defender Who Earned Goal Bonuses
Goal bonuses go almost exclusively to forwards, but Ramos was an exception. Being a center back, he still had scoring incentives — for set pieces especially.
- He scored 11 La Liga goals in 2019-20, which probably activated bonuses.
- It was this ability to score as a defender that made him one of the highest-paid defenders in history.
Women’s Soccer: The Bonus Gap
Male stars rake in huge bonuses, while female players rarely get similar incentives. The Brazilian legend Marta has scored 286 career club goals and yet does not even come close to receiving the same performance bonuses as male players.
- Her salary, $400,000/year, is astronomical for women’s soccer, but certainly nothing compared to men’s.
- For most women’s clubs, goal bonuses are out of reach, so they rely on team performance payouts.
SEE ALSO | How Much Does a Youth Soccer Referee Make Per Game?
The Flaw in Paying Players Per Goal
Goal bonuses may be appealing in theory, but they have potential drawbacks.
Encourages Selfish Play
- Players might take a shot rather than pass to a teammate in a better scoring position.
- Research on incentive structures has shown that goal bonuses resulted in an increased number of shot attempts with no actual effect for scoring efficiency.
Ignores Defence Contributions
- Defenders and midfielders rarely score, missing out on bonuses.
- That can cause demotivation for players whose jobs involve more tackling, interceptions, and playmaking.
Distorts Team Tactics
- Strikers can wander out of position just to chase down goal bonuses.
- It could lead to teams losing tactical discipline as each of them would prefer to reach personal stats than adhere to strategy.
SEE ALSO | Transfer Window Rules: All You Need To Know
Alternative Bonus Structures (Better Than Pay-Per-Goal?)
To get around these pitfalls, lots of clubs use wider performance incentives:
Win Bonuses
- Players are rewarded with additional cash for each victory and incentivized to work as a team rather than focus on their individual stats.
- Very common in MLS, Liga MX, and the Premier League mid-table.
Assist Bonuses
- Rewards playmakers who create opportunities (this is where Kevin De Bruyne would succeed).
- Helps balance the focus between scoring and setting up goals.
Defensive Metrics
- Makes defenders and goalkeepers feel equally valued.
- Bonuses for clean sheets, tackles, and interceptions.
4. Team Achievement Bonuses
- Players get extra pay for:
- Winning the league
- Qualifying for Champions League
- Reaching cup finals
5. Hybrid Models (The Best Solution?)
The smartest clubs combine multiple incentives:
- Base salary (guaranteed income)
- Goal/assist bonuses (but capped to avoid greed)
- Team success bonuses (for trophies and league position)
This keeps players motivated without sacrificing teamwork.
The Reality of Pay-Per-Goal Models
As good an idea as it may sound to pay soccer players based strictly on their number of goals, this isn’t realistic for most teams. Instead, clubs employ balanced contracts that incentivize overall performance but protect team chemistry.
Well, top goal-scorers do get additional incentives, but soccer is a team sport. Having an incentive system in place that creates value and motivates players to do well is well structured and promotes positive progress within a team.
So, while a player such as Messi, Ronaldo can “earn” millions each time they scores in terms of total contract value, the reality of player salaries is more complicated than a simple pay-per-goal calculation.
