How long does it take Premier League players to buy their dream cars?
We reveal how many on-pitch minutes it takes for star football players to buy their luxury cars
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How long do you think it took Manchester City striker Erling Haaland to save up for his £300,000 Rolls Royce Cullinan? We’ll tell you: 53 minutes.
Our study has revealed that Erling Haaland, the Premier League’s most valuable player, only needs to play 53 minutes for Manchester City to cover the cost of his £300,000 Rolls Royce Cullinan.
By diving into the relationship between top Premier League players’ salaries and their cars' market values, the study highlights just how quickly the players earn the money needed to buy their luxury vehicles.
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Top earners and their cars
Naturally, players with higher earnings and market value can afford their cars more quickly. And leading the pack of top earners is Man City striker Erling Haaland.
Thanks to a reported annual salary of £19.5 million, Haaland can park a £300,000 Rolls Royce Cullinan on his driveway after just under an hour on the pitch.
Recently, he was spotted enjoying a leisurely drive with his girlfriend, with the luxurious Cullinan a fitting match for his success in front of goal.
It would take the joint-second highest earner from the study, Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard, just 35 minutes on the pitch to pay for his £126,000 Audi RS Q8 with a reported £12.48m salary.
In the spotlight: forward players’ high-end models
As the stereotype goes, attackers tend to be football's most flamboyant players – on and off the pitch.
They also tend to earn more, and the study backs that up: Erling Haaland, Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka are reportedly three of the top five earners in the Premier League.
It would take Saka just 65 minutes of game time to afford his £190,000 Mercedes G63 AMG.
However, another attacker, Cole Palmer, would need to play for 167 minutes to pay for his equally expensive Lamborghini Urus due to his (relatively) lower £3.9m annual salary.
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Midfielders keeping it (more) real
Rodri and Declan Rice, despite being high earners for their midfield positions – £11.44m and £12.48m respectively – opted for more affordable vehicles (at around £75,000) than many of the flashier attackers.
Rodri can afford his Range Rover Sport after just 23 minutes of game time, while Declan Rice only needs 21 minutes to pay off his Mercedes-Benz V-Class.
This makes Rice the fastest earner of a luxury car in the study, and shows that even top players can pick practical options like the England enforcer’s MPV.
Mercedes takes the crown
Among Premier League players, Mercedes stands out as the most popular car brand, with half of the players in the study reportedly owning one.
The rugged, luxurious G-Class wins out as the most popular among footballers in the study, with Phil Foden splashing £150,000 on a ‘standard’ G-Wagon and Bukayo Saka and Bruno Guimaraes spending an extra £40,000 on G63 AMG variants.
Part of the beauty of a Mercedes is that it can cater to a variety of budgets, especially if you look at pre-owned and nearly new models. From a budget-friendly A-Class to a sublime S-Class, there’s a used Mercedes for everyone.
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Looking ahead
Sam Sheehan, our motoring editor, says: “Footballers often favour status-symbol luxury SUVs such as the Mercedes G-Class and Range Rover, but others - including the ultra-luxurious Rolls Royce Cullinan and super-sporty Lamborghini Urus - are getting more and more popular.”
Sam adds: “We’re looking forward to seeing which cars capture the hearts and minds of the highest-paid Premier League stars. The recently released Ferrari Purosangue, the upcoming Lamborghini Lanzador, or something else entirely?"