Leicester City wages: Who is the best paid player at the Foxes and everything you need to know about Leicester’s salary bill
Leicester City wages: Who is the best paid player at the Foxes and everything you need to know about Leicester’s salary bill
Leicester City pulled off one of the biggest feats in sporting history when they lifted the Premier League title under Claudio Ranieri’s tutelage in the 2015-16 season. However, things have been on a downward trajectory for the Foxes ever since as they have struggled to even remotely replicate the highs of that unforgettable campaign.
Admittedly, they did finish fifth in the Premier League standings in back-to-back seasons and even won the FA Cup at the end of the 2020-21 season, but then they got relegated to the Championship following a disastrous 2022-23 league campaign.
They won automatic promotion immediately by finishing at the top of the second division, but now once again face the threat of demotion from the top flight.
So, who is the highest earner at Leicester this season? And who is on the opposite end of the spectrum?
GOAL delved into the numbers from Capology and found out!
*Salaries are gross and on an annual basis
Goalkeepers
It’s quite rare to see the top two highest-paid goalkeepers at any club at the top level not be the first-choice goalkeeper. Indeed, neither Danny Ward nor Daniel Iversen — the first and second-highest paid keepers at Leicester — are undisputed starters at the King Power Stadium. That distinction goes to Mads Hermansen, who has started in goal for the majority of the games. Him and Jakub Stolarczyk are the joint-lowest paid keepers of Leicester.
Name Salary
Danny Ward £2,080,000
Daniel Iversen £1,040,000
Mads Hermansen £520,000
Jakub Stolarczyk £520,000
Defenders
Portuguese right-back Ricardo Pereira, who has struggled with injuries in recent seasons, is the club’s highest-paid defender, with English centre-back Conor Coady taking the second spot.
Experienced Denmark international Jannik Vestergaard is the third-highest paid defender in the squad. The former Southampton centre-back renewed his contract with Leicester until 2027 at the end of last season.
23-year-old left-back Luke Thomas is the lowest-paid defender.
| Name | Salary |
|---|---|
| Ricardo Pereira | £4,160,000 |
| Conor Coady | £3,900,000 |
| Jannik Vestergaard | £3,120,000 |
| Wout Faes | £2,600,000 |
| James Justin | £1,560,000 |
| Caleb Okoli | £1,300,000 |
| Victor Kristiansen | £1,300,000 |
| Luke Thomas | £780,000 |
Midfielders
Leicester’s midfield mainstay Harry Winks is the highest-paid player in his position with a salary of £4.68m per season.
Surprisingly, Boubakary Soumare is the second-highest-paid midfielder. Fans would’ve expected to see Wilfred Ndidi, who’s been among the lone bright spots for the Foxes this season, ahead of Soumare on this list.
Bangladesh’s Hamza Choudhury, a product of the Leicester City youth academy, is the joint-fourth highest-paid midfielder in the squad along with Oliver Skipp.
Interestingly, Argentine wonderkid Facundo Buonanotte, who has directly contributed to 26% of Leicester’s Premier League goals this season, earns a relatively paltry £1.3m salary.
The 18-year-old Michael Golding is the lowest-paid midfielder in the squad.
| Name | Salary |
|---|---|
| Harry Winks | £4,680,000 |
| Boubakary Soumare | £4,160,000 |
| Wilfred Ndidi | £3,900,000 |
| Hamza Choudhury | £2,600,000 |
| Oliver Skipp | £2,600,000 |
| Bilal El Khannouss | £1,820,000 |
| Facundo Buonanotte | £1,300,000 |
| Michael Golding | £416,000 |
Attackers
This one’s a no-brainer as club legend Jamie Vardy is the outright top-earning forward at Leicester, making over £7m per season. The 38-year-old has scored close to 200 goals for the club in around 500 appearances.
The second-highest paid attacker at the club is the out-of-favour Odsonne Edouard, with rumours that Leicester are contemplating the termination of his loan move with immediate effect.
Zambian striker Patson Daka is on number three on this list, ahead of someone like Jordan Ayew, who has had a greater impact this season.
On the other hand, Issahaku Fatawu and Stephy Mavididi are the joint-lowest paid forwards at Leicester, with the duo earning under a million pounds apiece.
Name Salary
Jamie Vardy £7,280,000
Odsonne Edouard £4,680,000
Patson Daka £3,900,000
Bobby De Cordova-Reid £1,820,000
Jordan Ayew £1,560,000
Kasey McAteer £780,000
Issahaku Fatawu £520,000
Stephy Mavididi £520,000
Top 5 highest-paid Leicester City players
As you might have already figured out, Vardy is deservingly the top earner at Leicester and the only player to earn more than £7m annually.
Edouard and Winks are the joint-second highest-earning players at the club, with Soumare and Pereira sharing the third spot to close out the top five earners.
| Name | Salary |
|---|---|
| Jamie Vardy | £7,280,000 |
| Odsonne Edouard | £4,680,000 |
| Harry Winks | £4,680,000 |
| Boubakary Soumare | £4,160,000 |
| Ricardo Pereira | £4,160,000 |
Top 5 lowest-paid Leicester City players
Not much to dissect here as top two lowest-paid players are below the age of 21: Golding and Fatawu.
First-choice goalkeeper Hermansen arguably doesn’t belong on this list given his key role within the team. However, he is included due to sharing the same wages as Fatawu, Stolarczyk, and Mavididi.
| Name | Salary |
|---|---|
| Michael Golding | £416,000 |
| Issahaku Fatawu | £520,000 |
| Mads Hermansen | £520,000 |
| Jakub Stolarczyk | £520,000 |
| Stephy Mavididi | £520,000 |
Total salary costs Leicester City
But what does that mean for the overall picture? In which area of the pitch are Leicester spending the most money, and how much do they spend annually on salaries for the first team?
There’s little difference between the annual wages of midfielders and attackers, but the Foxes are allocating the highest portion of their budget to the midfield position.
| Line | Salary |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | £4,160,000 |
| Defenders | £18,720,000 |
| Midfielders | £21,656,000 |
| Forwards | £21,060,000 |
| Total | £50,206,000 |
Leave a Reply