What a football chief scout earns
A football chief scout earns a median £1,300 a week, which is £67,600 a year. That is the middle of the 270 chief scouts we hold a wage for, at 270 clubs. One in ten earns more than £4,500 a week.
It is the joint sixth best paid of the 19 backroom jobs we hold a page for, and above the £840 median for football club staff as a whole.
The pay ladder for a football chief scout
All 270 chief scouts, from the lowest-paid tenth to the highest
| WHERE THE WAGE FALLS | WEEKLY | YEARLY |
|---|---|---|
| One in ten earns less than | £460 | £23,920 |
| One in four earns less than | £700 | £36,400 |
| The median | £1,300 | £67,600 |
| One in four earns more than | £2,400 | £124,800 |
| One in ten earns more than | £4,500 | £234,000 |
What a chief scout earns in each league
The 23 leagues where we hold wages for five or more chief scouts at three or more clubs
| # | LEAGUE | COUNTRY | STAFF | CLUBS | WEEKLY | YEARLY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bundesliga | Germany | 12 | 12 | £6,000 | £312,000 |
| 2 | Premier League | England | 15 | 15 | £4,500 | £234,000 |
| 3 | La Liga | Spain | 10 | 10 | £4,250 | £221,000 |
| 4 | Ligue 1 | France | 5 | 5 | £3,800 | £197,600 |
| 5 | Serie A | Italy | 10 | 10 | £2,900 | £150,800 |
| 6 | Championship | England | 18 | 18 | £2,000 | £104,000 |
| 7 | Primeira Liga | Portugal | 13 | 13 | £2,000 | £104,000 |
| 8 | La Liga 2 | Spain | 10 | 10 | £1,900 | £98,800 |
| 9 | 2. Bundesliga | Germany | 10 | 10 | £1,900 | £98,800 |
| 10 | Belgian Pro League | Belgium | 11 | 11 | £1,700 | £88,400 |
| 11 | Eredivisie | Netherlands | 8 | 8 | £1,550 | £80,600 |
| 12 | Major League Soccer | USA | 10 | 10 | £1,500 | £78,000 |
| 13 | League One | England | 17 | 17 | £1,100 | £57,200 |
| 14 | Scottish Premiership | Scotland | 7 | 7 | £1,100 | £57,200 |
| 15 | Eliteserien | Norway | 7 | 7 | £1,100 | £57,200 |
| 16 | League Two | England | 16 | 16 | £870 | £45,240 |
| 17 | Ligue 2 | France | 7 | 7 | £800 | £41,600 |
| 18 | Serie B | Italy | 6 | 6 | £780 | £40,560 |
| 19 | National League | England | 7 | 7 | £610 | £31,720 |
| 20 | Super Liga | Argentina | 7 | 7 | £470 | £24,440 |
| 21 | Russian Premier League | Russia | 6 | 6 | £440 | £22,880 |
| 22 | Ekstraklasa | Poland | 7 | 7 | £420 | £21,840 |
| 23 | Categoría Primera A | Colombia | 5 | 5 | £290 | £15,080 |
Where a chief scout is paid most
Median weekly wage by league, the top fifteen
The Bundesliga pays a chief scout a median £6,000 a week, and the Categoría Primera A £290, so the same job pays 20.7 times as much at one end of the table as the other. The Premier League is second at £4,500, drawn from 15 chief scouts at 15 clubs.
A Premier League chief scout's wage, season by season
The chief scouts at the clubs in the Premier League today, 2016/17 to 2025/26
The median was £4,200 a week in 2016/17 and £4,500 in 2025/26, up 7% across 10 seasons.
Against every other backroom job
Median weekly wage by role, chief scout highlighted
Chief scout ranks sixth of the 21 roles on the chart. It pays £460 a week more than the median member of a club backroom.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a football chief scout earn?
A median £1,300 a week, which is £67,600 a year. That is the middle of the 270 chief scouts we hold a wage for, at 270 clubs.
How much does a Premier League chief scout earn?
A median £4,500 a week, which is £234,000 a year, across the 15 chief scouts we hold a wage for at 15 Premier League clubs.
What do the best-paid chief scouts earn?
One in ten earns more than £4,500 a week, which is £234,000 a year. One in four earns more than £2,400 a week.
Which league pays a chief scout the most?
The Bundesliga, at a median £6,000 a week across 12 chief scouts. The lowest of the 23 leagues we can pool is the Categoría Primera A, at £290.
Is a chief scout paid more than other football club staff?
Yes. A chief scout earns a median £1,300 a week against £840 for backroom staff as a whole, which makes it the joint sixth best paid of the 19 roles we hold a page for.
Where to next
Every backroom job we hold a page for, by department
Coaching
Medical and sports science
Scouting and analysis
Management and administration
Football club staff salaries puts every role, department and league on one page. The managers are on pages of their own.