Survey reveals footballers' wages

The average Premiership footballers salary is £676,000

Premiership footballers earn an average of £676,000 per year, according to a survey by The Independent and the Professional Footballers' Association.

That figure, which equates to £13,000 per week, typically rises by between 60% and 100% when performance-related bonuses are taken into account.

Strikers have the highest average annual salary, with £806,000, while midfielders earn about £754,000.

Defenders earn £653,000 on average and Premiership goalkeepers make £533,000.

The basic pay represents an average rise of around 65% from the average figure in 2000.

Players' bonuses vary enormously - depending on the terms of their deal - but could easily double a footballer's salary.

Bonuses may include appearance money of about £5,000 per game - even if the player only comes on as a last-minute substitute.

PREMIERSHIP WAGES BY AGE 17-18: £24,500 19-20: £95,000 21-22: £390,000 23-24: £582,500 25-26: £653,000 27-28: £899,500 29-30: £806,000 31-32: £586,000 33+: 660,500 Average: £676,000* (* Average figure takes into account players aged over 20)

Signing-on fees are often a six-figure sum, with payments usually spread over the term of a player's contract - for example, a £250,000 signing-on fee, spread over three years, would equate to an extra £1,603 per week.

Players can also look forward to a share of a win bonus following each victory and an end-of-season performance bonus - often related to whether a team stays up or qualifies for Europe.

Further bonuses may follow if a club reaches a cup final and there may also be goal bonuses.

Wages are also staggered according to age, with the highest earners tending to be those aged between 27 and 30.

Salaries drop considerably in lower divisions, although they are still substantial.

Championship players earn an average salary of £195,750, League One players £67,850 and League Two £49,600.

About 400 players across the four professional divisions responded to the survey.

Despite the high salary figures, 64% of Premiership footballers who responded said they were in favour of a salary cap, which would mean that no more than 75% of a club's income should be spent on its wage bill.

Of the others, 35% said they would not support a cap and 1% did not know.