SALARYSPORT
★ 0
ELITESERIEN · DEFENDERS · 2026/27

Highest paid Eliteserien defenders

Hrannar Snær Magnússon is the best-paid defender in the Eliteserien, on £13,000 a week at Kristiansund BK, or £676,000 a year. Emil Breivik is next on £7,300 at Molde FK. We hold wages for 177 Eliteserien defenders in 2026/27.

BEST PAID £13k
AVERAGE WAGE £1,630
SHARE OF WAGE BILL32%
TOP 10 A WEEK £54k
WAGES HELD177

The 50 best-paid Eliteserien defenders

Weekly wage, 2026/27. A player who plays in two areas of the pitch is on both lists, at the full wage.

The best-paid defenders in the Eliteserien in 2026/27, ranked by weekly wage, with the yearly wage, club, age, position and nationality.
# PLAYER WEEKLY YEARLY CLUB AGE POSITION NATION
1 Hrannar Snær Magnússon £13,000£13k £676,000£676k Kristiansund BK 23 Left-back, left midfielder Iceland
2 Emil Breivik £7,300£7k £379,600£380k Molde FK 25 Right-back, defensive midfielder, attacking midfielder Norway
3 Fredrik Bjørkan £5,300£5k £275,600£276k FK Bodø/Glimt 26 Left-back Norway
4 Jonas Svensson £5,100£5k £265,200£265k Rosenborg BK 32 Right-back Norway
5 Birk Risa £4,500£5k £234,000£234k Molde FK 27 Centre-back Norway
6 Gustav Valsvik £4,200£4k £218,400£218k Strømsgodset Toppfotball 32 Centre-back Norway
7 Kristoffer Haugen £4,000£4k £208,000£208k Viking FK 31 Left-back Norway
8 Aslak Witry £3,500£4k £182,000£182k Rosenborg BK 29 Right-back Norway
9 Bjørn Inge Utvik £3,500£4k £182,000£182k Sarpsborg 08 FF 29 Centre-back, defensive midfielder Norway
10 Eirik Haugan £3,300£3k £171,600£172k Molde FK 27 Centre-back Norway
11 Fredrik Kristensen Dahl £3,300£3k £171,600£172k Molde FK 26 Centre-back Norway
12 Halldor Stenevik £3,200£3k £166,400£166k Molde FK 25 Full-back, right winger Norway
13 Jostein Gundersen £3,100£3k £161,200£161k FK Bodø/Glimt 29 Centre-back Norway
14 Isak Helstad Amundsen £3,100£3k £161,200£161k Molde FK 25 Centre-back Norway
15 Jacob Sørensen £3,100£3k £161,200£161k SK Brann 27 Centre-back, defensive midfielder Denmark
16 Kolbeinn Birgir Finnsson £3,000£3k £156,000£156k Vålerenga Fotball 25 Centre-back, left midfielder Iceland
17 Magnus Bech Riisnæs £2,900£3k £150,800£151k FK Bodø/Glimt 20 Right-back, attacking midfielder Norway
18 Martin Linnes £2,900£3k £150,800£151k Molde FK 33 Full-back Norway
19 Mathias Tønnessen £2,900£3k £150,800£151k Tromsø IL 21 Centre-back, defensive midfielder Norway
20 Sivert Sira Hansen £2,600£3k £135,200£135k Molde FK 23 Centre-back Norway
21 Sigurd Rosted £2,600£3k £135,200£135k Sarpsborg 08 FF 30 Centre-back Norway
22 Adrian Pereira £2,500£3k £130,000£130k Rosenborg BK 25 Left-back Norway
23 Ulrik Yttergård Jenssen £2,500£3k £130,000£130k Rosenborg BK 28 Centre-back Norway
24 Bent Sørmo £2,500£3k £130,000£130k Strømsgodset Toppfotball 28 Centre-back Norway
25 Anders Bærtelsen £2,500£3k £130,000£130k Viking FK 25 Centre-back Denmark
26 Casper Øyvann £2,400£2k £124,800£125k Molde FK 25 Centre-back Norway
27 Haitam Aleesami £2,200£2k £114,400£114k FK Bodø/Glimt 33 Centre-back Norway
28 Henrik Falchener £2,200£2k £114,400£114k Viking FK 22 Centre-back, defensive midfielder Norway
29 Henrik Heggheim £2,200£2k £114,400£114k Viking FK 24 Centre-back Norway
30 Gianni Stensness £2,200£2k £114,400£114k Viking FK 26 Centre-back, defensive midfielder Australia
31 Isak Määttä £2,100£2k £109,200£109k FK Bodø/Glimt 23 Left-back, winger Norway
32 Jesper Taaje £2,100£2k £109,200£109k Strømsgodset Toppfotball 27 Centre-back Norway
33 Lars Vilsvik £2,000£2k £104,000£104k Strømsgodset Toppfotball 36 Right-back Norway
34 Menno Koch £1,900£2k £98,800£99k Sarpsborg 08 FF 31 Centre-back Netherlands
35 Martin Ove Roseth £1,900£2k £98,800£99k Viking FK 27 Centre-back Norway
36 Odin Bjørtuft £1,800£2k £93,600£94k FK Bodø/Glimt 26 Centre-back, defensive midfielder Norway
37 Sondre Bjørshol £1,600£2k £83,200£83k Viking FK 31 Right-back Norway
38 Anders Trondsen £1,500£2k £78,000£78k Hamarkameratene 30 Left-back, defensive midfielder Norway
39 Alexander Munksgaard £1,500£2k £78,000£78k Kristiansund BK 27 Right-back Denmark
40 Abubacarr Sedi Kinteh £1,500£2k £78,000£78k Tromsø IL 18 Centre-back Gambia
41 Alexander Warneryd £1,500£2k £78,000£78k Tromsø IL 19 Full-back Sweden
42 Vetle Skjærvik £1,500£2k £78,000£78k Tromsø IL 24 Centre-back Norway
43 Aaron Kiil Olsen £1,500£2k £78,000£78k Vålerenga Fotball 24 Centre-back Norway
44 Daniel Bassi £1,400£1k £72,800£73k FK Bodø/Glimt 20 Left wing-back, winger Norway
45 Daniel Eid £1,400£1k £72,800£73k Fredrikstad FK 26 Right-back Norway
46 Claus Niyukuri £1,400£1k £72,800£73k Sarpsborg 08 FF 25 Right-back Burundi
47 Fredrik Sjøvold £1,300£1k £67,600£68k FK Bodø/Glimt 21 Right-back, defensive midfielder Norway
48 Fredrik Holmé £1,300£1k £67,600£68k Fredrikstad FK 23 Centre-back Norway
49 Fredrik Sjølstad £1,300£1k £67,600£68k Hamarkameratene 31 Centre-back, defensive midfielder Norway
50 Fredrik Pallesen Knudsen £1,300£1k £67,600£68k SK Brann 28 Centre-back Norway

What each position earns in the Eliteserien

Average weekly wage of the players aged 22 or over we hold a wage for

Goalkeepers £1,145 Defenders £1,630 Midfielders £2,231 Attackers £1,789

Defenders take 32% of what the Eliteserien pays its players of that age. The four shares add up to the whole bill, because a player who plays in two areas gives half the wage to each.

The clubs that pay their defenders the most

Every defender wage we hold at each Eliteserien club, added together, a week

Molde FK £35k FK Bodø/Glimt £21k Viking FK £20k Kristiansund BK £20k Rosenborg BK £18k Sarpsborg 08 FF £16k Strømsgodset Toppfotball £15k Tromsø IL £11k Hamarkameratene £10k SK Brann £9,665

Molde FK pay 15 defenders £34,999 a week between them, and Emil Breivik takes 21% of it.

The best-paid defender at every Eliteserien club

16 clubs, 2026/27, with where each ranks among the league's defenders

Each Eliteserien club's best-paid defender in 2026/27, the weekly wage, and that player's rank among every defender in the league.
CLUB PLAYER WEEKLY RANK
Kristiansund BK Hrannar Snær Magnússon £13,000£13k 1
Molde FK Emil Breivik £7,300£7k 2
FK Bodø/Glimt Fredrik Bjørkan £5,300£5k 3
Rosenborg BK Jonas Svensson £5,100£5k 4
Strømsgodset Toppfotball Gustav Valsvik £4,200£4k 6
Viking FK Kristoffer Haugen £4,000£4k 7
Sarpsborg 08 FF Bjørn Inge Utvik £3,500£4k 9
SK Brann Jacob Sørensen £3,100£3k 15
Vålerenga Fotball Kolbeinn Birgir Finnsson £3,000£3k 16
Tromsø IL Mathias Tønnessen £2,900£3k 19
Hamarkameratene Anders Trondsen £1,500£2k 38
Fredrikstad FK Daniel Eid £1,400£1k 45
Bryne FK Lasse Qvigstad £1,000£1k 58
KFUM-Kameratene Oslo Fredrik Berglie £918£918 67
FK Haugesund Martin Bjørnbak £900£900 69
Sandefjord Fotball Fredrik Pedersen £846£846 77

The best-paid defender in every men's league

43 leagues, ordered by their best-paid defender. The Eliteserien ranks 32nd.

The best-paid defender in each men's league we rank defenders in, the weekly wage, and the league's average defender wage over players aged 22 or over.
LEAGUE BEST PAID WEEKLY AVERAGE
Saudi Pro League Kalidou Koulibaly £497,000£497k £40,351£40k
Premier League Virgil van Dijk £350,000£350k £69,840£70k
Bundesliga Dayot Upamecano £331,000£331k £42,331£42k
Ligue 1 Lucas Hernández £316,000£316k £27,702£28k
La Liga João Cancelo £249,000£249k £37,418£37k
Serie A John Stones £200,000£200k £36,415£36k
Süper Lig Milan Škriniar £166,000£166k £15,078£15k
Superleague Greece Stefan de Vrij £117,000£117k £10,420£10k
Championship Kieran Trippier £115,000£115k £18,082£18k
Eredivisie Lutsharel Geertruida £99,000£99k £8,088£8k
Major League Soccer Jordi Alba £85,000£85k £7,805£8k
Scottish Premiership Ben Godfrey £80,000£80k £5,860£6k
Primeira Liga Jakub Kiwior £58,000£58k £5,910£6k
La Liga 2 David López £58,000£58k £4,473£4k
Russian Premier League Matheus Reis £57,000£57k £12,772£13k
Brasileirão Série A Guillermo Maripán £53,000£53k £8,284£8k
Belgian Pro League Matteo Dams £49,000£49k £5,133£5k
League One Wes Morgan £46,000£46k £5,700£6k
2. Bundesliga Yannick Gerhardt £42,000£42k £8,296£8k
Super Liga Nicolás Otamendi £41,000£41k £3,253£3k
Danish Superliga Rasmus Kristensen £39,000£39k £5,418£5k
Ekstraklasa Attila Szalai £36,000£36k £2,883£3k
Serie B Federico Baschirotto £33,000£33k £6,876£7k
Czech First League David Jurásek £29,000£29k £1,857£2k
Chinese Super League Matheus Jussa (Matheus Isaias dos Santos) £27,000£27k £4,788£5k
Liga MX Kenedy £25,000£25k £6,926£7k
Austrian Bundesliga Stefan Lainer £21,000£21k £4,095£4k
Ligue 2 Frédéric Guilbert £18,000£18k £4,556£5k
J1 League Gotoku Sakai £15,000£15k £3,457£3k
Croatian First League Ronaël Pierre-Gabriel £15,000£15k £2,078£2k
Thai League Erik Sviatchenko £14,000£14k £2,172£2k
Eliteserien Hrannar Snær Magnússon £13,000£13k £1,630£2k
Belgian Challenger Pro League Thomas Foket £8,600£9k £1,529£2k
League Two Alfie Dorrington £8,500£9k £2,352£2k
Categoría Primera A Frank Fabra £8,300£8k £3,994£4k
Scottish Championship Leon King £8,000£8k £952£952
A-League Jacob Farrell £6,100£6k £1,262£1k
Indian Super League Anwar Ali £4,500£5k £595£595
National League Jake Rooney £4,100£4k £1,165£1k
I-League Jamie McCart £4,100£4k £547£547
Veikkausliiga Alfie Cicale £2,500£3k £646£646
Canadian Premier League Curtis Ofori £1,400£1k £443£443
Meistriliiga Modou Tambedou £484£484 £152£152

Frequently asked questions

Who is the highest paid defender in the Eliteserien?

Hrannar Snær Magnússon of Kristiansund BK, on £13,000 a week in 2026/27, or £676,000 a year. Emil Breivik of Molde FK is second on £7,300 a week.

How much do Eliteserien defenders earn?

The average Eliteserien defender aged 22 or over earns £1,630 a week, and the median one £1,000. Defenders take 32% of what the Eliteserien pays its players of that age.

Which Eliteserien club pays its defenders the most?

Molde FK, £34,999 a week across the 15 defenders we hold a wage for, led by Emil Breivik on £7,300.

Who is the highest paid defender in football?

Of the 43 men's leagues we rank defenders in, the best-paid is Kalidou Koulibaly of Al-Hilal Saudi Football Club in the Saudi Pro League, on £497,000 a week. The best-paid in the Eliteserien ranks 32nd of the 43 leagues on that measure.

Where to next

The same Eliteserien squads, cut a different way

See the highest paid Eliteserien players in every position, the best-paid player at every club, what Eliteserien players are paid at every age, or the Eliteserien wage bill, club by club.