Have you ever wondered which African footballer playing In their home league takes home the biggest salaries?
While many stars seek lucrative contracts in Europe, some have continued to Impress within Africa. This guide provides the top 10 highest-paid African footballers playing In Africa.
Who Is The Highest-Paid African Footballer Playing In Africa?
Rank | Player | Nationality | Club | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Ali Maaloul | Tunisia | Al Ahly | $1.5 million |
2 | Ramadan Sobhi | Egypt | Pyramids FC | $1.446 million |
3 | Percy Tau | South Africa | Al Ahly | $1.2 million |
4 | Keagan Dolly | South Africa | Kaizer Chiefs | $1.189 million |
5 | Ahmed Fathi | Egypt | Pyramids FC | $1 million |
6 | Mohamed Awad | Egypt | Zamalek | $1 million |
7 | Hussein El Shahat | Egypt | Al Ahly | $1 million |
8 | Aliou Dieng | Senegal | Al Ahly | $900,000 |
9 | Ramy Rabia | Egypt | Al Ahly | $900,000 |
10 | Abdallah El-Said | Egypt | Pyramids | $867,000 |
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1. Ali Maaloul
Ali Maâloul is a Tunisian professional footballer playing as a left-back for Egyptian Premier League club Al Ahly. Maâloul is one of the highest-paid African players playing in Africa.
It all started with CS Sfaxien, his hometown club, Maâloul quickly rose to prominence, eventually becoming their captain in the 2014–15 season. His potential was clear when he became the top scorer in the league during the 2015–16 season.
That’s an impressive feat for a defender. In 2016, Maâloul joined Al Ahly, signing a four-year contract, and his contributions were pivotal in the team’s success in various tournaments.
Maâloul has also represented Tunisia in the Africa Cup of Nations and the FIFA World Cup. His notable appearances include the 2015 and 2017 editions of the Africa Cup of Nations and the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
With a remarkable career spanning both club and international levels, Maâloul’s talent and dedication make him one of the best defenders In the Egyptian Premier League.
2. Ramadan Sobhi
Ramadan Sobhi began his professional career at the age of 17 with Cairo club Al Ahly. He caught the eye of Spanish club Atlético Madrid during the Sheikh Zayed friendly tournament in the UAE in April 2014.
We saw a glimpse of Sobhi’s skills when he scored his first goal for Al Ahly in June 2014, helping his team secure victories in crucial matches.
His performances didn’t go unnoticed by European clubs, with Arsenal, RB Leipzig, Roma, Sampdoria, and Udinese all expressing interest.
Sobhi eventually made a move to the Premier League, joining Stoke City in July 2016 for a fee of £5 million. He made his debut against Manchester City and provided assists in matches against Swansea City and West Ham United.
Despite Stoke City’s relegation in the 2017-2018 season, Sobhi continued to impress scoring his first Premier League goal against West Bromwich Albion in December 2017.
He later joined Huddersfield Town in June 2018 but struggled to secure regular playing time under manager David Wagner. However, Sobhi returned to his roots, rejoining Al Ahly on loan from Huddersfield Town in December 2018 before moving to Pyramids FC in September 2020.
His international career has also been amazing, representing Egypt at different levels. In November 2019, Sobhi led the Egypt national under-23 football team to victory in the Africa U-23 Cup of Nations, scoring a crucial goal in the final against Ivory Coast.
3. Percy Tau
Percy Tau is one of the highest-paid African footballers playing on the continent. During his time with Sundowns, he achieved quite a bit, winning the league title twice and the CAF Champions League once.
He was also named Footballer of the Year and joint-top-goalscorer in his final season with the club. After joining Brighton & Hove Albion in 2018, Tau faced some work-permit issues and was loaned out to Belgian side Union SG.
There, he won the Proximus League Player of the Season award, then moved to Club Brugge, where he earned a league winners’ medal. This continued with a loan move to Anderlecht in 2020.
In 2021, Tau signed with Egyptian Premier League side Al Ahly. Percy made history In December 2023, becoming the highest-scoring South African in the FIFA Club World Cup.
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4. Keagan Dolly
Keagan Dolly became a popular talent while playing for Ajax Cape Town, where he won the Premier Soccer League Young Player award in the 2013–14 season.
Mamelodi Sundowns noticed his talent and brought him back to their team for the 2014–15 season but decided to loan him to Ajax Cape Town to ensure he got enough playing time.
Returning to Mamelodi Sundowns for the 2015–16 season, Dolly helped his team win the league and the CAF Champions League. Despite a contract dispute in November 2016, where Sundowns contested a buyout clause, Dolly eventually moved to Montpellier HSC in January 2017.
After his time in Europe, he returned to South Africa to join Kaizer Chiefs in July 2021. Internationally, Dolly represented South Africa in the under-23 team and captained the side during the 2016 Summer Olympics.
5. Ahmed Fathi
Ahmed Fathi, an Egyptian footballer is one of the highest-paid African footballers playing in Africa. He was once linked with a move to the Egyptian club El Zamalek for €2 million, but he declined the transfer to continue his career outside of Egypt.
Instead, he joined El-Ahly in 2007 for a fee of £675,000. However, since the transfer window in Egypt had closed, Al-Ahly loaned him to Kuwaiti side Kazma to regain match fitness. Fathi made his debut for Al Ahly in 2008 and became a regular in the team.
In 2013, English Championship side Hull City signed Fathi on loan until the end of the season. After his contract with Al Ahly expired in 2014, Fathi joined Umm Salal in Qatar and later returned to Al Ahly in 2015.
In April 2020, Pyramids FC announced that Fathi would be joining their side on a free transfer. This move stirred mixed feelings among Al Ahly fans. Internationally, Fathi has had a remarkable career.
He became the youngest-ever international player for Egypt at 17 years old. Fathi was part of Egypt’s squad that won the Africa Cup of Nations in 2006. He was also named the fair player of the tournament in the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations and was included in the team of the tournament.
Fathi was selected for Egypt’s squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, where unfortunately, he scored an own goal in a match against Russia.
6. Mohamed Awad
One of the highest-paid African footballers currently playing in Africa is Mohamed Awad. He had some notable experiences in his career. In December 2014, Ismaily SC rejected a loan request from Al-Masry to keep Awad.
He hadn’t played any official matches that season and wanted to go on loan to Al-Masry. Ismaily SC agreed, and Awad played 22 matches, keeping a clean sheet in ten.
However, in March 2015, Ismaily SC decided not to renew Awad’s loan, as they needed him for the upcoming season. They also rejected offers from a Portuguese club to sell Awad. Eventually, he returned to Ismaily SC.
7. Hussein El Shahat
Another highest-paid African footballer playing in Africa is Hussein Ali El Shahat Ali Hassan. He was born on June 21, 1992, in Egypt. El Shahat is a professional footballer who plays as a winger for the Egyptian Premier League club Al Ahly.
He can also take on the role of an attacking midfielder. El Shahat began his club career with Misr Lel-Makkasa from 2014 to 2018. Later, he joined Al Ain, where he won the 2017–18 UAE Pro League and finished as a runner-up in the 2018 FIFA Club World Cup.
During the latter tournament, he scored a crucial goal in the quarterfinals against Espérance Sportive de Tunis, contributing to a 3–0 victory.
In January 2019, El Shahat made a move to Al Ahly. On February 4, 2021, he scored the winning goal for Al Ahly in a 1–0 victory over Al-Duhail in the 2020 FIFA Club World Cup.
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8. Aliou Dieng
Aliou Dieng Is a defensive midfielder currently playing for Al Ahly in the Egyptian Premier League. Dieng is ranked one of the highest-paid African football players playing In Africa. In July 2019, Dieng moved to join Al Ahly.
The deal was for five years, although the exact fee wasn’t disclosed. This move marked an important step in his club career. Dieng has also made his mark on the international stage.
He began by representing Mali at the local level during the 2016 African Nations Championship. During this tournament, he scored a penalty in a quarter-final match against Tunisia, contributing to his team’s victory. Dieng was also part of Mali’s squad for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations.
9. Ramy Rabia
Ramy Rabia is an Egyptian centre-back, playing for Ahly in the Egyptian Premier League. Rabia has achieved significant success throughout his career, winning multiple Egyptian Premier League titles, CAF Champions League titles, and CAF Super Cups with Al Ahly.
Despite facing some injury setbacks, he remains a key player for both his club and country. Rabia’s talent is recognized as one of the brightest prospects in Egyptian football, representing Egypt at both youth and senior levels.
10. Abdallah El-Said
Abdallah Mahmoud Said Bekhit is an Egyptian professional footballer, playing as an attacking midfielder for Zamalek. Abdallah has had an interesting career, having started with Ismaily and later signed a three-year contract extension with them in May 2007.
In 2011, despite earlier reports of joining Zamalek, he moved to Al Ahly due to different reasons including Ismaily’s financial needs. During his time with Al Ahly, Abdallah scored four goals in his first season before it was cut short by the Egyptian Revolution of 2011.
He also had stints with clubs like KuPS in Finland and Al-Ahli Saudi in Saudi Arabia on loan. In January 2019, Abdallah returned to Egypt, joining Pyramids FC before making a move to Zamalek in January 2024. His return to Zamalek marks an important point in his career, as he continues to contribute to Egyptian football.