Zlatan Ibrahimovic is nothing less than one of the biggest stars in football right now. The Swede has always projected a larger-than-life image of himself and is a cult hero among fans. A well-travelled footballer who has played for some of the biggest clubs in the world, Ibrahimovic justifies his off-field image with his on-field play, which has an affinity towards the ‘spectacular’.
His incredibly successful career has made him one of the most marketable figures on the planet and hence fans around the world are intrigued about Ibrahimovic’s salary and net worth
Zlatan is a confident character who unabashedly projects himself as the alpha male and has thrown himself back into the spotlight with the recent move to Manchester United where he made an electrifying start to life.
All the charades aside, Zlatan is an accomplished striker who has won titles at almost every club he has played at and boasts an enviable goals-per-game ratio. He has played for the big 3 in Italy (Inter, AC Milan and Juve), and also played for Barcelona, PSG, Ajax, and now Manchester United.
He is never away from the headlines (or the other way round according to him). Naturally, he is one of the most talked about footballers in the world which makes him an extremely marketable personality. Let’s take stock of the big Swede’s earnings and net worth.
Also read: Neymar’s salary and endorsements
Earnings from football (Salary & Winnings)
Having had a successful club career laden with trophies, Zlatan is one of the richest footballers in the world. The 34-year-old has invariably landed himself bumper contracts befitting a top player at all his clubs. Needless to say, he is on a reported $260,000-per-week bumper contract at Manchester United.
Adding the windfalls he has received from various trophies he has won, his earning from football alone amounts to a whopping $30.4 million according to Forbes magazine.
Provided his stint at United is successful and he decides to continue at Old Trafford, we might just see Zlatan’s coffers fill up pretty quick.
Earnings from endorsements
Ibrahimovic’s larger-than-life image and attitude means that he is a supremely marketable athlete. With almost 4 million followers on Twitter and 15.7 million followers on Instagram, Zlatan wields much influence on social media which makes him extremely desirable for global brands.
He recently signed a lucrative 3-year-deal with sportswear giants Nike and also has his own line of sportswear named ‘A-Z’. He also had sponsorship deals with Nivea Men and Microsoft’s Xbox.
He also has a signature cologne, aptly named ‘Zlatan Ibrahimovic Supreme’. He is one of the ambassadors for Swedish automobile giants ‘Volvo’ and has recently signed up to promote ‘Vitamin Well’ – a Swedish health drinks company.
Also read: Top 20 richest footballers in the world
Before his move to Manchester United, when the hype surrounding Zlatan was at it’s peak, he shared a moody snap of him next to a Volvo car with a message that read, “For me it is all about looking forward, not back. A new journey is starting – both for me and for @volvocars”.
Needless to say, it went viral with most of his fans reading it a hint of his upcoming move to Manchester United, highlighting the pulling power of Zlatan.
But the most lucrative of his endorsement deals is the one he recently signed with Nike which will fetch him $3 million annually!
As per experts, a celebrity endorsement drives the sales of a brand by about 4% but in the case of Zlatan the boost is ‘turbo-charged’, which is why his earnings from endorsements alone total up to $7 million. It takes his net worth up to about $37.5 million.
Interestingly, the name ‘Zlatan’ was trademarked in 2003 in Sweden, which meant that he received exclusive rights to the name for certain products, including his own range of sporting goods and clothing. He also had a deal with Xbox in 2013, and when he was at PSG, he gifted all his PSG teammates personalised ‘Zlatan Xboxes’. Typical!
Charity work
A compassionate human being underneath the confident and cocky attitude, Zlatan has rarely shied away from contributing to social causes. In 2014, he spent $51,000 to send the Swedish national football team for the intellectually disabled to the INAS World Football Championships in Brazil, in addition to various other charity work in his home country.
In 2007, he self-funded a ‘Zlatan Court’ in his hometown of Malmo, complete with a playing mat, goalposts, lighting, and a modern fence. He has also collaborated with the UN World Food Programme.
