J1 LEAGUE · TOP 100
Highest paid J1 League players
Erik leads on £36,000 per week. These 100 players take £1,026,400 a week between them - 57% of the league's entire wage bill. We hold a wage for 480 of the 653 players in the J1 League.
TOP 100 WEEKLY £1.0m
SHARE OF LEAGUE BILL57%
MEDIAN AGE29
MOST IN THE LIST13 Kashima Antlers
Where the top 100 play
Combined weekly wages of each club's players in this list
What each age band takes
Combined weekly wages of the top 100 by age
The shape of the top 100
Weekly wage by rank #1 £36k #10 £17k #100 £6k
Erik earns 2.1× what the tenth best paid player in the list does, and 6.4× the 100th. Half of the £1.0m a week on this page goes to the first 30 players on it.
The top 100
Tap a column heading to re-rank| # | PLAYER | WEEKLY | YEARLY | TEAM | NATION | AGE | POSITION |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Erik | £36,000 | £1,872,000 | Vissel Kobe | Brazil | 30 | Attacking midfielder, striker |
| 02 | Oriol Romeu | £35,000 | £1,820,000 | Avispa | Spain | 33 | Defensive midfielder |
| 03 | Yûya Ôsako | £34,000 | £1,768,000 | Vissel Kobe | Japan | 35 | Attacking midfielder, striker |
| 04 | Yuki Soma | £28,000 | £1,456,000 | FC Machida Zelvia | Japan | 28 | Attacking midfielder |
| 05 | Yoshinori Mutô | £25,000 | £1,300,000 | Vissel Kobe | Japan | 32 | Winger, striker |
| 06 | Takuma Asano | £22,000 | £1,144,000 | Sanfrecce | Japan | 30 | Attacking midfielder, striker |
| 07 | Kewin (Kewin Oliveira Silva) | £20,000 | £1,040,000 | Fagiano Okayama | Brazil | 30 | Goalkeeper |
| 08 | Aleksandar Čavrić | £20,000 | £1,040,000 | Kashima Antlers | Serbia | 31 | Winger, striker |
| 09 | Mateus Santos | £18,000 | £936,000 | Nagoya Grampus | Brazil | 30 | Attacking midfielder, striker |
| 10 | Jackson Irvine | £17,000 | £884,000 | Cerezo Osaka | Australia | 32 | Defensive midfielder |
| 11 | Leo Ceara | £17,000 | £884,000 | Kashima Antlers | Brazil | 30 | Striker |
| 12 | Elber | £17,000 | £884,000 | Kashima Antlers | Brazil | 33 | Attacking midfielder |
| 13 | Na Sangho | £16,000 | £832,000 | FC Machida Zelvia | South Korea | 28 | Attacking midfielder |
| 14 | Din David | £16,000 | £832,000 | F Marinos | Israel | 29 | Winger, striker |
| 15 | Gaku Shibasaki | £15,000 | £780,000 | Kashima Antlers | Japan | 33 | Defensive midfielder |
| 16 | Akihiro Ienaga | £15,000 | £780,000 | Kawasaki Frontale | Japan | 39 | Attacking midfielder |
| 17 | Gotoku Sakai | £15,000 | £780,000 | Vissel Kobe | Japan | 34 | Full-back |
| 18 | Gen Shoji | £13,000 | £676,000 | FC Machida Zelvia | Japan | 32 | Centre-back, defensive midfielder |
| 19 | Naomichi Ueda | £13,000 | £676,000 | Kashima Antlers | Japan | 30 | Centre-back |
| 20 | Boniface Nduka | £13,000 | £676,000 | Vissel Kobe | Japan | 29 | Centre-back |
| 21 | Kim Jin Hyeon | £12,000 | £624,000 | Cerezo Osaka | South Korea | 38 | Goalkeeper |
| 22 | Ibrahim Dresevic | £12,000 | £624,000 | FC Machida Zelvia | Kosovo | 28 | Centre-back, defensive midfielder |
| 23 | Hiroto Taniguchi | £12,000 | £624,000 | Kawasaki Frontale | Japan | 25 | Centre-back, defensive midfielder |
| 24 | Marcinho | £11,000 | £572,000 | Kawasaki Frontale | Brazil | 30 | Winger |
| 25 | Marcos Júnior | £11,000 | £572,000 | Sanfrecce | Brazil | 32 | Attacking midfielder, striker |
| 26 | Miki Yamane | £11,000 | £572,000 | Urawa Reds | Japan | 31 | Centre-back |
| 27 | Kento Hashimoto | £10,000 | £520,000 | FC Tokyo | Japan | 31 | Defensive midfielder |
| 28 | Yuto Nagatomo | £10,000 | £520,000 | FC Tokyo | Japan | 38 | Full-back, wide midfielder |
| 29 | Takashi Usami | £10,000 | £520,000 | Gamba Osaka | Japan | 33 | Attacking midfielder, striker |
| 30 | Yûma Suzuki | £10,000 | £520,000 | Kashima Antlers | Japan | 29 | Attacking midfielder, striker |
| 31 | Kento Misao | £10,000 | £520,000 | Kashima Antlers | Japan | 29 | Centre-back, defensive midfielder |
| 32 | Takashi Inui | £10,000 | £520,000 | Vissel Kobe | Japan | 37 | Attacking midfielder |
| 33 | Diego | £9,400 | £488,800 | Shimizu S-Pulse | Brazil | 29 | Defensive midfielder, attacking midfielder |
| 34 | Danilo Boza | £9,400 | £488,800 | Urawa Reds | Brazil | 27 | Centre-back |
| 35 | Filip Uremović | £9,300 | £483,600 | Kawasaki Frontale | Croatia | 28 | Centre-back |
| 36 | Issam Jebali | £9,100 | £473,200 | Gamba Osaka | Tunisia | 33 | Attacking midfielder, striker |
| 37 | Kazuya Konno | £9,000 | £468,000 | Kawasaki Frontale | Japan | 28 | Attacking midfielder |
| 38 | Matheus Sávio | £9,000 | £468,000 | Urawa Reds | Brazil | 28 | Attacking midfielder |
| 39 | Tatsuki Seko | £9,000 | £468,000 | Urawa Reds | Japan | 27 | Right-back, defensive midfielder |
| 40 | Thuler | £8,900 | £462,800 | Vissel Kobe | Brazil | 26 | Centre-back |
| 41 | Asahi Masuyama | £8,500 | £442,000 | FC Machida Zelvia | Japan | 28 | Winger |
| 42 | Diego | £8,400 | £436,800 | Vissel Kobe | Brazil | 29 | Centre-back |
| 43 | Hiroyuki Mae | £8,200 | £426,400 | FC Machida Zelvia | Japan | 29 | Defensive midfielder |
| 44 | Hiroaki Okuno | £8,200 | £426,400 | Sagamihara Topolino | Japan | 35 | Defensive midfielder |
| 45 | Kazuki Fujita | £8,000 | £416,000 | Avispa | Japan | 24 | Goalkeeper |
| 46 | Lucas | £8,000 | £416,000 | Cerezo Osaka | Brazil | 31 | Attacking midfielder |
| 47 | Koki Anzai | £8,000 | £416,000 | Kashima Antlers | Japan | 30 | Left-back |
| 48 | Kei Koizumi | £8,000 | £416,000 | Shimizu S-Pulse | Japan | 30 | Right wing-back, defensive midfielder |
| 49 | Kei Chinen | £8,000 | £416,000 | F Marinos | Japan | 30 | Defensive midfielder |
| 50 | Masaya Okugawa | £7,900 | £410,800 | Kyoto Sanga F.C. | Japan | 29 | Attacking midfielder |
| 51 | Ryoya Ogawa | £7,700 | £400,400 | Kashima Antlers | Japan | 28 | Left-back |
| 52 | Papagaio | £7,700 | £400,400 | Kyoto Sanga F.C. | Brazil | 26 | Striker |
| 53 | Ryuji Izumi | £7,700 | £400,400 | Nagoya Grampus | Japan | 31 | Defensive midfielder, attacking midfielder |
| 54 | Shahab Zahedi | £7,600 | £395,200 | Avispa | Iran | 29 | Winger, striker |
| 55 | Shinji Kagawa | £7,600 | £395,200 | Cerezo Osaka | Japan | 36 | Defensive midfielder, attacking midfielder |
| 56 | Shinnosuke Nakatani | £7,600 | £395,200 | Gamba Osaka | Japan | 29 | Centre-back |
| 57 | Taiyo Koga | £7,600 | £395,200 | Kashiwa Reysol | Japan | 26 | Centre-back |
| 58 | Sébastien Haller | £7,600 | £395,200 | Sanfrecce | Côte d’Ivoire | 31 | Striker |
| 59 | Samuel Gustafson | £7,600 | £395,200 | Urawa Reds | Sweden | 30 | Defensive midfielder |
| 60 | Daihachi Okamura | £7,400 | £384,800 | FC Machida Zelvia | Japan | 28 | Centre-back |
| 61 | Daichi Hayashi | £7,400 | £384,800 | Gamba Osaka | Japan | 28 | Attacking midfielder, striker |
| 62 | Daniel Schmidt | £7,400 | £384,800 | Nagoya Grampus | Japan | 33 | Goalkeeper |
| 63 | Capixaba | £7,400 | £384,800 | Shimizu S-Pulse | Brazil | 28 | Winger |
| 64 | Yota Komi | £7,300 | £379,600 | Cerezo Osaka | Japan | 22 | Winger, striker |
| 65 | Erison | £7,300 | £379,600 | JEF United Chiba | Brazil | 26 | Right winger, striker |
| 66 | Yuta Higuchi | £7,300 | £379,600 | Kashima Antlers | Japan | 28 | Central midfielder |
| 67 | Haruya Fujii | £7,200 | £374,400 | Nagoya Grampus | Japan | 24 | Centre-back |
| 68 | Hayao Kawabe | £7,200 | £374,400 | Sanfrecce | Japan | 29 | Defensive midfielder, attacking midfielder |
| 69 | Takuma Nishimura | £7,000 | £364,000 | FC Machida Zelvia | Japan | 28 | Attacking midfielder, striker |
| 70 | Teruhito Nakagawa | £7,000 | £364,000 | FC Tokyo | Japan | 32 | Attacking midfielder, striker |
| 71 | Welton | £7,000 | £364,000 | Gamba Osaka | Brazil | 27 | Winger |
| 72 | Kyôsuke Tagawa | £7,000 | £364,000 | Kashima Antlers | Japan | 26 | Right winger, striker |
| 73 | Keita Endo | £7,000 | £364,000 | Kashiwa Reysol | Japan | 27 | Winger |
| 74 | Katsuya Nagato | £7,000 | £364,000 | Vissel Kobe | Japan | 30 | Left-back |
| 75 | Nassim Ben Khalifa | £6,900 | £358,800 | Avispa | Switzerland | 33 | Attacking midfielder, striker |
| 76 | Marco Túlio | £6,900 | £358,800 | Kyoto Sanga F.C. | Brazil | 27 | Attacking midfielder |
| 77 | Ryuta Koike | £6,700 | £348,400 | Kashima Antlers | Japan | 29 | Full-back |
| 78 | Rubén Blanco | £6,700 | £348,400 | F Marinos | Spain | 29 | Goalkeeper |
| 79 | Sho Inagaki | £6,600 | £343,200 | Nagoya Grampus | Japan | 33 | Defensive midfielder |
| 80 | Takumu Kawamura | £6,600 | £343,200 | Sanfrecce | Japan | 25 | Defensive midfielder, attacking midfielder |
| 81 | Thiago Santana | £6,600 | £343,200 | Urawa Reds | Brazil | 32 | Striker |
| 82 | Shusaku Nishikawa | £6,600 | £343,200 | Urawa Reds | Japan | 39 | Goalkeeper |
| 83 | Takahiro Ohgihara | £6,600 | £343,200 | Vissel Kobe | Japan | 33 | Defensive midfielder |
| 84 | Ayumu Ohata | £6,500 | £338,000 | Cerezo Osaka | Japan | 24 | Left-back |
| 85 | Dion Cools | £6,400 | £332,800 | Cerezo Osaka | Malaysia | 29 | Centre-back, right midfielder |
| 86 | Yûta Nakayama | £6,300 | £327,600 | FC Machida Zelvia | Japan | 28 | Centre-back, defensive midfielder |
| 87 | Yudai Kimura | £6,300 | £327,600 | Nagoya Grampus | Japan | 24 | Attacking midfielder, striker |
| 88 | Jesiel | £6,100 | £317,200 | Kawasaki Frontale | Brazil | 31 | Centre-back |
| 89 | Keigo Higashi | £6,000 | £312,000 | FC Tokyo | Japan | 34 | Defensive midfielder, attacking midfielder |
| 90 | Koya Yuruki | £6,000 | £312,000 | Kashiwa Reysol | Japan | 30 | Attacking midfielder |
| 91 | Yu Kobayashi | £6,000 | £312,000 | Kawasaki Frontale | Japan | 37 | Right winger, striker |
| 92 | Kensuke Nagai | £6,000 | £312,000 | Nagoya Grampus | Japan | 36 | Attacking midfielder, striker |
| 93 | Kim Ju-Sung | £6,000 | £312,000 | Sanfrecce | South Korea | 24 | Centre-back |
| 94 | Kenta Inoue | £6,000 | £312,000 | Shimizu S-Pulse | Japan | 26 | Winger |
| 95 | Ryoma Watanabe | £5,700 | £296,400 | Urawa Reds | Japan | 28 | Attacking midfielder |
| 96 | Solomon Sakuragawa | £5,600 | £291,200 | Cerezo Osaka | Japan | 23 | Striker |
| 97 | Thiago Andrade | £5,600 | £291,200 | Cerezo Osaka | Brazil | 24 | Winger, striker |
| 98 | Tomoki Hayakawa | £5,600 | £291,200 | Kashima Antlers | Japan | 26 | Goalkeeper |
| 99 | Tomoya Inukai | £5,600 | £291,200 | Kashiwa Reysol | Japan | 32 | Centre-back |
| 100 | Takaaki Shichi | £5,600 | £291,200 | Sanfrecce | Japan | 31 | Left-back, left midfielder |
Frequently asked questions
Who is the highest paid player in the J1 League?
Erik of Vissel Kobe, on £36,000 per week — £1,872,000 a year.
How much do the top 100 J1 League players earn between them?
£1,026,400 per week and £53,372,800 per year, which is 57% of the entire J1 League wage bill.
Which J1 League club has the most players in the top 100?
Vissel Kobe, with 10 of them, paying £163,900 a week across those players.
What does it take to make the top 100?
£5,600 per week — that is what Takaaki Shichi earns in 100th place.
Beyond football
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