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10 BRANDS

Age: 22Club: BarcelonaCountry: Brazil

Sponsorship: Nike, Panasonic, VolksWagonReported Weekly Wage: £150,000

BRAND USP: Neymar's increasing reputation led the media and former great players to draw comparisons between Neymar and Lionel Messi, . Neymar was featured on the front covers of the video games Pro Evolution Soccer 2012 and Pro Evolution Soccer 2013. Neymar has become an icon in promoting Brazilian modern pop music, particularly Música sertaneja.

10. Neymar

Age: 23Club: ChelseaCountry: Belgium

Major sponsors: NikeReported Weekly Wage: £185,000

BRAND USP: Currently regarded as one of the best midfielders of his generation. Although approached by Adidas, Hazard has remained loyal to his long-term sponsors Nike, with a renewed endorsement contract that is said to make him one of their leading football faces along with Ronaldo, Rooney, Neymar and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

9. Eden Hazard

Age: 28Club: Manchester CityCountry: Spain

Major sponsors: AdidasReported Weekly Wage: £200,000

BRAND USP: Nicknamed ‘Merlin’ for his wizard-like passing abilities. He is famously described by his sponsor Adidas as a ‘new brand of player’ with surgical precision and a brain for strategy. Appeared in over 150 games in three seasons, winning the FA Cup, League Cup and Premier League

8. David Silva

Age: 27Club: LiverpoolCountry: Uruguay 

Major Sponsors: AdidasReported Weekly Wage: £220,000

BRAND USP: He was seen as a national hero when he helped lead his country to a fourth place finish in the 2010 World Cup after blocking a goal bound header from Ghana in the quarter-final with his hands. He was sent off, but Ghana missed the penalty and Uruguay went on to go through to the next round.

7. Luis Suarez

Age: 26Club: Manchester City Country: Argentina

Major sponsors: Puma, PepsiReported Weekly Wage: £220,000

BRAND USP: Snappy dresser: Man City's Argentine striker Sergio Aguero is on £220,000-a-week at the Etihad Stadium. Multiple leg injuries kept him in news and have resulted in a bit of a stop-start career at Manchester City so far for the Argentine, nicknamed ‘Kun’.

6. Sergio Aguero

Age: 31Club: Manchester CityCountry: Ivory Coast

Major Sponsors: Puma, FordReported Weekly Wage: £230,000

5. Yaya Touré

BRAND USP: an endorsement deal with Puma that includes distributing the brand’s gear to underprivileged African children. He is one of the only non-strikers on the list - but despite this, was third top scorer in the Premiership last season chipping in with 20 goals for Manchester City helping them win the title.

Age: 30Club: Manchester UnitedCountry: Holland

Major Sponsors: Nike, Adidas, BT Sport, PepsiReported Weekly Wage: £250,000

BRAND USP: PFA Player of the Year and the Football Writers’ Footballer of the Year, it’s no wonder Van Persie left Arsenal to chase for club honours. Van Persie is currently the all-time top scorer for Holland. He is also one of world football's top earners.

4. Van Robin Persie

Age: 29Club: Real MadridCountry: Portugal 

Major sponsors: Nike, Coca-Cola, Castrol, Konami, Motorola, Herbalife, KFC, Tag Heuer, Fly Emirates, Emporio ArmanReported Weekly Wage: £288,000

BRAND USP: His popularity on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter have translated into big bucks from sponsors like Nike, Castrol and Konami, all of which he promotes through his own social accounts . Monopolising the advertising world, Ronaldo also launched himself into the fashion industry as the ‘spokesmodel’ for Emporio Armani Underwear and Armani Jeans in 2009.

3. Christiano

Ronaldo

Age: 28Club: Manchester UnitedCountry: England

Major Sponsors: Harper Collins, Nike, EA Sports, Coca-ColaReported Weekly Wage: £300,000

BRAND USP: EA gaming which features Rooney on the front of its best-selling FIFA football games. He managed to become the club’s third top scorer of all time, overtaking George Best and Ryan Giggs, and as a result, now has an enormous net worth estimated to be in excess of £60million.

2. Wayne Rooney

1.

Age: 26Club: BarcelonaCountry: Argentina

Major sponsors: Adidas, Turkish Airlines, PepsiCo, Herbalife, EA Sports, Dolce & Gabanna, Adidas, GilletteReported Weekly Wage: £292,000

1. LIONEL

MESSI

BRAND USP: Often regarded as the best footballer in the world. Broke the 39-year record for most goals in a European club season in 2012 when he finished the season with 73 goals and has won the Ballon d’Or a whopping three times. He is also a three-time winner of FIFA Player of the Year and became the first player to score five goals in a Champions League match.

Which side are you on?

Sources : Wikipedia, DailyMail