There was a time when soccer (European football) players didn't earn as much money as they do today. Back then, this sport was associated with beer and hanging out. Today, when the second most important thing in the world turned out to be a gold mine, soccer is usually associated with girls, models, sports betting and cars.
Almost every player buys a car from their first big paycheck. It's like a tradition. The more lucrative the contract is, the more expensive the car they choose for showing off is. The players in England earn the most. There, an average player gets a multi-million dollar contract. So, it's not unusual to see the players from England driving the best cars.
The most popular car among the Premiership players, according to the Times, is BMW X5 ($55,000). John Terry, Rio Ferdinand, Sol Campbell, Cristiano Ronaldo, former English football legend Paul Gascoigne, and Wayne Rooney all drive the BMW X5. Wayne Rooney also has a Ford Ka parked in his garage. Of course, most of these players have more than just one car, and they have also changed many cars througout their career.
Bentley Continental ($180,000) is also one of the most favorite cars among soccer players. You can often see Floyd Hasselbaink, Kieron Dyer, Gary Neville, Jackie McNamara, John Terry and Michael Ball on the streets driving Bentley Continental.
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Bentley Continental
Thierry Henrry, Steven Gerrard and Ryan Giggs each paid circa $330,000 for their favourite Aston Martin Vanquish. Thierry Henrry, who left Arsenal to play for Barcelona this season, owns German sports car Porsche 991 GT3 ($150,000), just like Louis Saha, Robbie Keane and Lee Bowyer.
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Aston Martin Vanquish
Chelsea players Frank Lampard and Glenn Johnson are very satisfied with their $200,000 worth Aston Martin DB9s. Well, who wouldn't be? It's interesting that Premiership players rarely drive Italian cars, knowing how popular they are throughout the world. Only Ian Wright and Kieron Dyer own a Ferrari 360 ($150,000). The most expensive cars are parked in garages of Chelsea's Claude Makelele and Arsenal's William Gallas. They drive $630,000 worth Mercedes McLaren SLR.
Automotive industry very often sponsors many soccer clubs and competitions. They pay a lot to place their ads on stadiums, logos on jerseys, and they often give their cars to players just to show them off. Fords sponsors UEFA's Champion League, Audi is the official car of the Manchester United. Opel pays millions of euros for their ads on AC Milan's jerseys, and Fiat traditionally sponsors Juventus.
