INDIAN SUPER LEAGUE · DEFENDERS · 2026/27
Highest paid Indian Super League defenders
Anwar Ali and Akash Mishra are the best-paid defenders in the Indian Super League, on £4,500 a week each, or £234,000 a year. Tom Aldred is next on £3,600 at Kolkata. We hold wages for 112 Indian Super League defenders in 2026/27.
BEST PAID £5k
AVERAGE WAGE £595
SHARE OF WAGE BILL26%
TOP 10 A WEEK £29k
WAGES HELD112
The 50 best-paid Indian Super League defenders
Weekly wage, 2026/27. A player who plays in two areas of the pitch is on both lists, at the full wage.
| # | PLAYER | WEEKLY | YEARLY | CLUB | AGE | POSITION | NATION |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anwar Ali | £4,500£5k | £234,000£234k | Bengal | 24 | Centre-back | India |
| 2 | Akash Mishra | £4,500£5k | £234,000£234k | Mumbai | 23 | Left-back | India |
| 3 | Tom Aldred | £3,600£4k | £187,200£187k | Kolkata | 34 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 4 | Abhishek Singh | £3,500£4k | £182,000£182k | Kolkata | 20 | Left-back | India |
| 5 | Ashique Kuruniyan | £2,500£3k | £130,000£130k | Bengaluru | 28 | Left wing-back, left winger | India |
| 6 | Alberto Rodríguez | £2,500£3k | £130,000£130k | Kolkata | 32 | Centre-back | Spain |
| 7 | Carlos Delgado | £2,400£2k | £124,800£125k | Mumbai | 35 | Centre-back | Spain |
| 8 | Lazar Ćirković | £2,000£2k | £104,000£104k | Jamshedpur | 32 | Centre-back | Serbia |
| 9 | Míchel Zabaco | £1,900£2k | £98,800£99k | Guwahati | 36 | Centre-back | Spain |
| 10 | Muhammed Uvais | £1,900£2k | £98,800£99k | Punjab FC | 26 | Left-back | India |
| 11 | Sandesh Jhingan | £1,600£2k | £83,200£83k | Goa | 31 | Centre-back | India |
| 12 | Nuno Reis | £905£905 | £47,060£47k | Chennai | 34 | Centre-back, defensive midfielder | Portugal |
| 13 | Mandar Rao Dessai | £900£900 | £46,800£47k | Chennai | 33 | Left-back, left winger | India |
| 14 | Rafael Ribeiro | £780£780 | £40,560£41k | Sporting Club Delhi | 29 | Centre-back | Brazil |
| 15 | Rahul Bheke | £695£695 | £36,140£36k | Bengaluru | 34 | Centre-back | India |
| 16 | Asish Rai | £695£695 | £36,140£36k | Kolkata | 26 | Right-back | India |
| 17 | Nikhil Poojary | £692£692 | £35,984£36k | Bengaluru | 29 | Right-back, right winger | India |
| 18 | Jay Gupta | £690£690 | £35,880£36k | Bengal | 23 | Centre-back | India |
| 19 | Jerry Lalrinzuala | £605£605 | £31,460£31k | Goa | 26 | Left-back | India |
| 20 | Sana Singh (Chinglensana Singh) | £600£600 | £31,200£31k | Bengaluru | 28 | Centre-back | India |
| 21 | Stephen Eze | £600£600 | £31,200£31k | Jamshedpur | 31 | Centre-back | Nigeria |
| 22 | Subhasish Bose | £600£600 | £31,200£31k | Kolkata | 29 | Centre-back | India |
| 23 | Oumar Bah | £597£597 | £31,044£31k | Kerala | 32 | Centre-back | Guinea |
| 24 | Mati | £575£575 | £29,900£30k | Kerala | 27 | Centre-back, defensive midfielder | Spain |
| 25 | Deepak Tangri | £563£563 | £29,276£29k | Kolkata | 26 | Centre-back, defensive midfielder | India |
| 26 | Seriton Fernandes | £557£557 | £28,964£29k | Goa | 32 | Right-back | India |
| 27 | Pratik Chaudhuri | £545£545 | £28,340£28k | Jamshedpur | 35 | Centre-back | India |
| 28 | Roshan Singh | £525£525 | £27,300£27k | Bengaluru | 26 | Left-back | India |
| 29 | Amey Ranawade | £525£525 | £27,300£27k | Kolkata | 27 | Right-back | India |
| 30 | Álex Zalaya | £522£522 | £27,144£27k | Goa | 27 | Centre-back, defensive midfielder | Spain |
| 31 | Boris Singh | £515£515 | £26,780£27k | Bengal | 25 | Right-back, right winger | India |
| 32 | Nim Dorjee Tamang | £501£501 | £26,052£26k | Goa | 29 | Centre-back | India |
| 33 | Narender Gahlot | £480£480 | £24,960£25k | Bengal | 24 | Centre-back | India |
| 34 | Prabir Das | £460£460 | £23,920£24k | Inter Kashi | 31 | Full-back | India |
| 35 | Mohammed Rakip | £447£447 | £23,244£23k | Bengal | 25 | Right-back | India |
| 36 | Bijay Chhetri | £442£442 | £22,984£23k | Mumbai | 24 | Centre-back | India |
| 37 | Mehtab Singh | £405£405 | £21,060£21k | Kolkata | 27 | Centre-back | India |
| 38 | Edwin Sydney | £400£400 | £20,800£21k | Odisha | 32 | Right-back, defensive midfielder, attacking midfielder | India |
| 39 | Gaurav Bora | £380£380 | £19,760£20k | Kolkata | 27 | Centre-back | India |
| 40 | Hira Mondal | £370£370 | £19,240£19k | Kolkata | 28 | Left-back | India |
| 41 | Joe Zoherliana | £350£350 | £18,200£18k | Kolkata | 26 | Right-back | India |
| 42 | Wayne Vaz | £347£347 | £18,044£18k | Inter Kashi | 30 | Centre-back | India |
| 43 | Souvik Chakraborty | £345£345 | £17,940£18k | Bengal | 34 | Right-back, defensive midfielder | India |
| 44 | Sarthak Golui | £345£345 | £17,940£18k | Jamshedpur | 27 | Centre-back | India |
| 45 | Manoj Mohammad | £320£320 | £16,640£17k | Sporting Club Delhi | 26 | Left-back | India |
| 46 | Vignesh Dakshinamurthy | £315£315 | £16,380£16k | Chennai | 27 | Left-back, left winger | India |
| 47 | Udanta Singh | £299£299 | £15,548£16k | Goa | 29 | Right wing-back, right winger | India |
| 48 | Laldinliana | £297£297 | £15,444£15k | Chennai | 26 | Right-back | India |
| 49 | Sumeet Passi | £260£260 | £13,520£14k | Inter Kashi | 30 | Right-back, striker | India |
| 50 | Saviour Gama | £260£260 | £13,520£14k | Odisha | 28 | Left-back | India |
What each position earns in the Indian Super League
Average weekly wage of the players aged 22 or over we hold a wage for
Defenders take 26% of what the Indian Super League 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 Indian Super League club, added together, a week
Kolkata pay 14 defenders £13,734 a week between them, and Tom Aldred takes 26% of it.
The best-paid defender at every Indian Super League club
13 clubs, 2026/27, with where each ranks among the league's defenders
| CLUB | PLAYER | WEEKLY | RANK |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mumbai | Akash Mishra | £4,500£5k | 2 |
| Bengal | Anwar Ali | £4,500£5k | 1 |
| Kolkata | Tom Aldred | £3,600£4k | 3 |
| Bengaluru | Ashique Kuruniyan | £2,500£3k | 5 |
| Jamshedpur | Lazar Ćirković | £2,000£2k | 8 |
| Punjab FC | Muhammed Uvais | £1,900£2k | 10 |
| Guwahati | Míchel Zabaco | £1,900£2k | 9 |
| Goa | Sandesh Jhingan | £1,600£2k | 11 |
| Chennai | Nuno Reis | £905£905 | 12 |
| Sporting Club Delhi | Rafael Ribeiro | £780£780 | 14 |
| Kerala | Oumar Bah | £597£597 | 23 |
| Inter Kashi | Prabir Das | £460£460 | 34 |
| Odisha | Edwin Sydney | £400£400 | 38 |
The best-paid defender in every men's league
43 leagues, ordered by their best-paid defender. The Indian Super League ranks 38th.
| 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 Indian Super League?
Anwar Ali of Bengal and Akash Mishra of Mumbai, on £4,500 a week each in 2026/27, or £234,000 a year.
How much do Indian Super League defenders earn?
The average Indian Super League defender aged 22 or over earns £595 a week, and the median one £307. Defenders take 26% of what the Indian Super League pays its players of that age.
Which Indian Super League club pays its defenders the most?
Kolkata, £13,734 a week across the 14 defenders we hold a wage for, led by Tom Aldred on £3,600.
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 Indian Super League ranks 38th of the 43 leagues on that measure.
Where to next
The same Indian Super League squads, cut a different way
See the highest paid Indian Super League players in every position, the best-paid player at every club, what Indian Super League players are paid at every age, or the Indian Super League wage bill, club by club.