Kevin de Bruyne stunning earnings 'revealed' amid Man City contract uncertainty

Manchester City star Kevin de Bruyne has been named one of the top 10 highest-paid footballers in the world in 2024, according to Forbes.

The Belgian has proved a number of doubters wrong since arriving at the Etihad Stadium from Bundesliga side, Wolfsburg. During his time with the Blues, the 33-year-old has completed club football in the North West, winning six Premier League crowns, a Champions League, two FA Cups, five League Cup triumphs as well as personal accolades such as two-time PFA Player of the Season.

De Bruyne will undoubtedly go down as one of the greats in City's history as he enters the final six months of his contract, which is set to expire at the end of the season. According to findings published by Forbes, De Bruyne is the 10th-highest-paid footballer in the sport.

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It has been reported that De Bruyne earns around $39million (£30m) with $35m coming from his on-the-pitch exploits. Forbes claims that the former Chelsea midfielder earns around $4m from his off-field sponsorships which include Nike and McDonald's.

De Bruyne was the subject of interest from Saudi Arabia in the summer as the Kingdom eyed the Belgium star to become the latest high-profile arrival in the Middle East. However, manager Pep Guardiola confirmed that he would remain at the Etihad Stadium.

He said: "Kevin is not going. If someone leaves, we're going to talk about that.

"Of course, until the last day, we have chances (to make transfers), I don't rule out the option to have new players but I think there is an 85/90 per cent chance we will have the same squad.

"I feel comfortable, because the quality of human beings we have in the squad is difficult to be replaced, and the quality is there. But we'll see, I don't know in the last moment if someone comes for some players and they leave, we're going to decide."

Forbes' methodology includes salaries, bonuses and image rights for their on-field calculations, from databases such as Capology. Meanwhile, endorsements, licensing as well as businesses operated by the players are included.

Cristiano Ronaldo topped their list, reportedly earning a whopping $285million (£219m), with Lionel Messi ($135m, £103m), Neymar ($110m, £84m), Karim Benzema ($104m, £80m) and Kylian Mbappe ($90m, £69m) making up the top five.