What is Didier Drogba's net worth and salary?
Didier Yves Drogba Tebily is a popular figure in and around the blue parts of West London. Hailing from the capital city of Ivory Coast, Abidjan, he had travelled thousands of miles to an entirely different continent to make a name for himself.
Fortune did not favour the young Ivorian as he went through plenty of hardships in life, beginning at a very tender age. The loss of his parent’s jobs compelled little Didier to move to France to live with his uncle Michael Goba, who was a professional footballer back then, although the former Chelsea player’s misfortune could be considered as a blessing in disguise.
He stepped up his interest in football and learned to develop his raw talent by playing in a car park in the city of Paris suburbs, something which was helped even more when his parents and siblings joined him in Antony later on.
The 37-year-old’s quest on becoming one of the world's best strikers started off when he joined Levallois, a semi-professional club where he gained the reputation as a prolific scorer and left the coach impressed by his professional attitude.
Over the years, Drogba plied his trade in France playing for clubs like Le Mans and Marseille, but it was during the time when he joined Chelsea where he got a real breakthrough in his footballing career. Under the guidance of Portuguese tactician, Jose Mourinho, who would have expected the young African boy from Ivory Coast to go on and become one of World’s best striker and defender’s worst nightmare?
Being the ultimate ‘big game player’ made Drogba popular
Often been described as a late bloomer, Drogba is noted for his ability to retain possession of the ball, physical strength and ability in the air. Endowed with his unique physical attributes, the Ivorian is renowned for being a ‘big game performer’, scoring 10 goals in 10 finals at club level. He was rewarded with 10 trophies for his outstanding contribution in the finals of various competitions.
The boy from Abidjan has come a long way and his hard struggling journey has been rewarded with an illustrious footballing career – a sense of achievement on which he can look back one day and give himself a pat on the back. His story is an inspiration to thousands of kids all over the world, who are looking to make it big like him someday.
The 37-year-old has added numerous accolades over the years, both at individual and club level. Most of it was achieved with his former club from London, Chelsea where he spent 8 years at Stamford Bridge.
Drogba has won four Premier League titles with the Blues along with four League cups and FA cups, but the Champions League title win in 2012 was undoubtedly one of the most cherished moments in his career.
While comparing him with top Premier League strikers in a piece for the Mirror, Richard Beech spoke highly about the Ivorian, with one memorable quote in particular summing up the striker’s qualities.
"Powerful and intrusive approach made him the lone striker Mourinho grew to admire and made it nearly impossible for opposing teams to isolate him and freeze him out of the game.”
He has won it all with the West London outfit and has now moved on to Montreal Impact to seek greener pastures at the twilight of his career. But what is Drogba’s actual net worth? Where does he stand in the list of Africa’s richest footballers? Let’s take a look.
Drogba’s net worth and its breakdown
Back in 2014, the former Chelsea striker’s earnings were accounted by Forbes magazine to be an estimated $15.8 million per annum. This fortune is quite impressive for the striker considering the fact that he hadn’t earned a big move early in his career until his move to Stamford Bridge in 2004, at the age of 26.
Over the years, Drogba has signed a number of lucrative contracts with Chelsea and other top clubs. He was paid $170,000-per-week by the Blues at his peak, a sum which was then dwarfed by Chinese club Shanghai Shenhua, who paid the Ivorian $300,000-per-week without bonuses during his short spell with the club.
The figure went up further when he decided to join Turkish side Galatasaray on an 18-month deal, where he was reportedly earning a staggering $5.2 million-a-year.
The 37-year-old is now at the twilight of his career, which means that he is not in the best physical condition to play in Europe’s competitive leagues. He recently joined MLS outfit Montreal Impact, where he has taken a wage cut from his past earnings. Several sources claimed that the club are paying the Ivorian $3 million on 18-month deal, making him the top earner at the club by a mile.
Taking all that into consideration, the former Ivory Coast captain now has a net worth of $90 million including his salary, which is estimated at $15.8 million. It's no surprise Samuel Eto'o is the only African player to be ahead of the Ivorian superstar, with a net worth of $118 million.
Drogba has been one of the bankable athletes in the world and his endorsement deals with big companies like Pepsi, Nike and Samsung earned him a massive $5 million in 2013, according to The Richest. He also owns a company called Clubnote Limited which saw an increase in assets from £285,000 to £618,000 in 2011, establishing him as an entrepreneur besides being a football player.
It has also been headlined that the Ivorian owns a sizzling property in London worth £14.5 million. Along with the lavishing property he owns, Drogba has the craze for fancy luxurious cars. The former Chelsea striker has a collection of cars including Ferrari which he bought in his days with the West London club, and most recently a McLaren SLR Roadster.
He is a keen philanthropist as well, who donates regularly to causes and also takes up social campaigns to raise awareness for many issues around the world.