The highest paid World Rugby players

Writer: Tony O'Hagan.

The perception that, in order to maintain the sporting spirit of the game, rugby had to be played by amateurs, endured for over a century. Although professionalism was already creeping into the game by the 1980s, it was not until 1995, fired by the success of that year’s World Cup, that media moguls started throwing serious money at the sport and the IRB declared Rugby Union professional.

The 1995 World Cup – and especially when South Africa’s first black president, Nelson Mandela handed the victorious white South African captain, Francois Pienaar the trophy – is widely regarded as the moment when the world really fell in love with Rugby Union.

Today, Springbok fly-half, Handré Pollard and former All Black fullback, Charles Piutau are the highest paid rugby players. Both are earning £1million (± R23million) per annum, excluding endorsements and bonuses. The suspension of competitions due to COVID-19 will obviously affect the bonus portion of their total earnings. The world’s top earners, with annual salary in brackets, are:

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