The Premier League’s highest paid player every season from 1998 to 2024

On By Littum

The Gallagher Premiership is now full of players earning astronomical wages despite the current financial crisis.

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We’ve identified the highest paid Premier League player for every season since the game turned professional to find out.

To do so, we’ve done painstaking research to delve into newspaper archives to uncover the reported player salaries.

Some seasons had multiple top earners with players signing contracts at different times during the campaign, but they have used the top earner at the end of each season.

Do you have it? Good.

Let’s take a look at the results:

1997-1998: Va’aiga Tuigamala (Newcastle Falcons) – £80,000 per season

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1999-2000: Francois Pienaar (Saracens) – £85,000 per season

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2000-2001: Jason Robinson (Sale Sharks) – £180,000 per season

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2001-2002: Martin Johnson (Leicester Tigers) – £200,000 per season

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2002-2004: Jonny Wilkinson (England) – £250,000 per season

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2005-2007: Lawrence Dallaglio (Wasps) – £300,000 per season

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2007-2010: Carl Hayman (Newcastle Falcons) – £350,000 per season

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2010-11: Mike Tindall (Gloucester) – £380,000

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2011-2013: Toby Flood (Leicester Tigers) – £400,000

2012-2014: Chris Robshaw (Harlequins) – £420,000

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2014-2015: Sam Burgess (Bath) – £500,000 per season

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2016-2017: Louis PIcamoles (Northampton Saints) – £500,000 per season

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2017-2018: Manu Tuilagi (Leicester Tigers) – £510,000 per season

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2018-2022: Charles Piutau (Bristol Bears) – £1,000,000 per season

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2023 – : Finn Russell (Bath Rugby) – £1,000,000 per season

2024 – : Finn Russell (Bath Rugby) – £1,000,000 per season

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