Soccer has become one of the most popular sports in South Africa because of its accessibility compared to other team sports such as rugby or cricket. The league has been around since 1996 and each team must follow specific rules for salary caps and player transfers so that there is fair competition between all teams involved.
How do soccer players get paid in South Africa?
In South Africa, football clubs pay soccer players and can make a lot of money. Some earn more than others, but their salaries have gone down over the years.
The top earners in the PSL are Kaizer Chiefs’ Siphiwe Tshabalala and Orlando Pirates’ Benni McCarthy. In 2010 they earned R7 million each (about US$1 million at today’s exchange rate), but now they only make R5 million ($300 000).
Who is the top earner?
The top earner of these players is Teko Modise, who is the captain of Mamelodi Sundowns and earns $220,000 a month. He was born in Temba, Cape Town and he started playing football at ten when he joined a club called Cradock Athletic in East London, Eastern Cape province. After some time he moved to another team called Ajax CT where he stayed for two years before moving to Jomo Cosmos FC. In 2002 Teko moved to Orlando Pirates FC where he spent seven years playing there before joining Mamelodi Sundowns in 2009 as their captain ever since then.
What is the salary cap of a soccer team?
Every soccer team in South Africa has a salary cap, so they can only spend a certain amount of money on the players’ salaries. The league set the salary cap, and it is usually around $1.5 million per club. It’s based on the size of the club and how many players they have (not to mention their history).
To determine your total player budget, multiply your squad’s age average by $20 million (for FPL) or $6 million (for FM19).
Factors that affect a player’s wage
It is also important to note that several factors determine a player’s wage, and these factors can only be fully explained by looking at each individual case. These include:
- Age
- Experience
- Quality of play
Local soccer players are earning less than their foreign counterparts because they are not as experienced. Local soccer players are younger, but this does not mean that they cannot perform well on the field. However, with the lack of experience, it is understandable why they earn less than other soccer players who are more experienced in the game.
