The Top 10 Highest Paid Rugby Players In The World Right Now
Jason Hennessy
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Big bucks.
Springboks superstar Cheslin Kolbe shocked the world when he made the switch from Toulouse to Toulon back in August in a deal worth a reported €1m-a season.
The World Cup-winning winger was on a salary of €800k-a-season with reigning European champions Toulouse, with Toulon paying €1.6m to buy him out of the final two years of his contract.
But the whopping salary only puts him fourth the standings when it comes to the highest-paid rugby players in the world right now. His Springbok teammate Handre Pollard tops the list with the Montpellier man on close to €1.2m-a-season, a salary Charles Piutau shares a Bristol Bears.
Another Springbok comes in at third with Eben Etzebeth on over a million at Toulon with the mercurial Finn Russell rounding off the top 5 with a matching salary to Kolbe at Racing 92. Check out the full list below in € with a graphic below that for £.
Top 10 Highest Paid Rugby Players
1. Handre Pollard – €1.185m
2. Charles Piutau – €1.185m
3. Eben Etzebeth – €1.06m
4. Cheslin Kolbe – €1m
5. Finn Russell – €1m
6. Virimi Vakatawa – €925k
7. Beauden Barrett – €925k
8. Maro Itoje – €885k+
9. Michael Hooper – €885k
10. Owen Farrell – €885k
