World Cup 2010: How much do top footballers earn?

With the World Cup just a few weeks away, CareerBuilder took a look at the salary top players in the football world are earning from their sport. After reviewing the top 5, we have come to the realization we should have practiced a bit harder during our youth.

You probably don't even need to ask yourself how the top 20 compare to your salary... Most of us will need at least up to one lifetime to make the top players' yearly income.

The top five

1. Coming in at No.1 is 25-year-old Portuguese football player Cristiano Ronaldo, who earns £11,300,000* (€ 13,210,184) per year as a forward for Spanish football club Real Madrid. Ronaldo -- who also captains the Portuguese national team -- is the most-expensive football player in history. Real Madrid bought his rights from U.K.-based Manchester United in a 2009 trade -- for a cool £91.5 million. 

2. Sweden's Zlatan Ibrahimovic comes in at number two, earning a reported £10,400,000 (€ 12,158,046) for the 2009-2010 season. The 29-year-old striker plays for Barcelona and the Swedish national team; and until Ronaldo's Real Madrid deal was inked in 2009, Ibrahimovic was the highest-paid football player. 

3. At 22, Lionel Messi is the youngest player to make the top-20 list of highest-paid football stars. Messi's 2009-2010 contract is worth £9,100,000 (€ 10,638,290). Messi, a striker for Barcelona, will represent his home-country of Argentina at this year's World Cup. 

4. Samuel Eto'o is the captain of Cameroon's national team and a member of Italy's Internazionale club. The striker was part of the team that won the 2000 Summer Olympics and will participate in his third World Cup tournament this year. His experience has paid off -- his current contract is worth £9,100,000 (€ 10,638,290). 

5. Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite, more commonly known as Kaka to fans, rounds out the top five. Kaka, 27, hails from Brazil and will make £8,700,000 (€ 10,170,673) as a midfielder for Real Madrid this year. Before teammate Cristiano Ronaldo's Real Madrid deal, Kaka also spent time at the top of the highest-paid players list. 

The rest of the top 20

6. Karim Benzema
Country: France
Club Team: Real Madrid
Age: 22
Salary: £7,400,000 (€ 8,650,917)  

7. Carlos Tevez
Country: Argentina
Club Team: Manchester City
Age: 26
Salary: £7,000,000 (€ 8,183,300)   

8. John Terry     
Country: England
Club Team: Chelsea
Age: 29
Salary: £6,500,000 (€ 7,598,778)

9. Frank Lampard
Country: England
Club Team: Chelsea
Age: 31
Salary: £6,500,000 (€ 7,598,778)

10. Thierry Henry
Country: France
Club Team: Barcelona
Age: 32
Salary: £6,500,000 (€ 7,598,778)

11. Xavi
Country: Spain
Club Team: Barcelona
Age: 30
Salary: £6,500,000 (€ 7,598,778)

12. Ronaldinho
Country: Brazil
Club Team: AC Milan
Age: 30
Salary: £6,500,000 (€ 7,598,778)

13. Steven Gerrard
Country: England
Club Team: Liverpool
Age: 29
Salary: £6,500,000 (€ 7,598,778)

14. Daniel Alves
Country: Brazil
Club Team: Barcelona
Age: 26
Salary: £6,100,000 (€ 7,131,161) 

15. Michael Ballack
Country: Germany
Club Team: Chelsea
Age: 33
Salary: £5,600,000 (€ 6,546,640) 

16. Raul
Country: Spain
Club Team: Real Madrid
Age: 32
Salary: £5,600,000 (€ 6,546,640)

17. Rio Ferdinand
Country: England
Club Team: Manchester United
Age: 31
Salary: £5,600,000 (€ 6,546,640)

18. Kolo Toure
Country: Ivory Coast
Club Team: Manchester City
Age: 29
Salary: £5,600,000 (€ 6,546,640)

19. Wayne Rooney
Country: England
Club Team: Manchester United
Age: 24
Salary: £5,200,000 (€ 6,546,640)

20. Robinho
Country: Brazil
Club Team: Manchester City
Age: 26
Salary: £5,200,000 (€ 6,546,640)

*Football player salary information provided by Portuguese marketing agency Futebol Finance