SCOTTISH CHAMPIONSHIP · DEFENDERS · 2026/27
Highest paid Scottish Championship defenders
Leon King is the best-paid defender in the Scottish Championship, on £8,000 a week at Ayr United, or £416,000 a year. Adam Montgomery is next on £5,500 at Livingston. We hold wages for 102 Scottish Championship defenders in 2026/27.
BEST PAID £8k
AVERAGE WAGE £952
SHARE OF WAGE BILL33%
TOP 10 A WEEK £35k
WAGES HELD102
The 50 best-paid Scottish Championship 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 | Leon King | £8,000£8k | £416,000£416k | Ayr United | 21 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 2 | Adam Montgomery | £5,500£6k | £286,000£286k | Livingston | 22 | Left-back, left winger | Scotland |
| 3 | Graeme Shinnie | £4,200£4k | £218,400£218k | Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 33 | Left-back, defensive midfielder | Scotland |
| 4 | Kerr Smith | £4,000£4k | £208,000£208k | Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 20 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 5 | Aaron Donnelly | £3,500£4k | £182,000£182k | Dunfermline Athletic | 22 | Centre-back | Northern Ireland |
| 6 | Akil Wright | £2,500£3k | £130,000£130k | Ross County | 29 | Centre-back, defensive midfielder | England |
| 7 | Ethan Ingram | £2,300£2k | £119,600£120k | Partick Thistle | 22 | Right-back | England |
| 8 | Luke Robinson | £2,000£2k | £104,000£104k | Dunfermline Athletic | 23 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 9 | Alfons Amade | £1,500£2k | £78,000£78k | Dunfermline Athletic | 25 | Right-back, defensive midfielder | Mozambique |
| 10 | Ben McPherson | £1,500£2k | £78,000£78k | Partick Thistle | 21 | Right-back | Scotland |
| 11 | Christopher Cupps | £1,400£1k | £72,800£73k | Greenock Morton | 17 | Centre-back | United States |
| 12 | Cristian Montaño | £1,400£1k | £72,800£73k | Livingston | 33 | Left-back, left winger | Colombia |
| 13 | Connor Randall | £1,400£1k | £72,800£73k | Ross County | 29 | Right-back, defensive midfielder | England |
| 14 | Jai Rowe | £1,100£1k | £57,200£57k | Raith Rovers | 23 | Right-back | England |
| 15 | Josh Reid | £1,100£1k | £57,200£57k | Ross County | 23 | Left-back | Scotland |
| 16 | Kevin Holt | £1,000£1k | £52,000£52k | Ayr United | 32 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 17 | Lewis Stevenson | £1,000£1k | £52,000£52k | Raith Rovers | 37 | Left-back | Scotland |
| 18 | Cammy Kerr | £980£980 | £50,960£51k | Livingston | 29 | Full-back | Scotland |
| 19 | Kane Ritchie-Hosler | £900£900 | £46,800£47k | Stenhousemuir | 22 | Right wing-back, right winger | England |
| 20 | Brooklyn Kabongolo | £890£890 | £46,280£46k | Livingston | 22 | Centre-back | France |
| 21 | Lee Ashcroft | £890£890 | £46,280£46k | Partick Thistle | 31 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 22 | Callum Fordyce | £880£880 | £45,760£46k | Raith Rovers | 33 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 23 | Miller Thomson | £880£880 | £45,760£46k | Ross County | 20 | Right-back, right winger | Scotland |
| 24 | Daniel O'Reilly | £870£870 | £45,240£45k | Partick Thistle | 30 | Centre-back | Ireland |
| 25 | Darragh O'Connor | £870£870 | £45,240£45k | Raith Rovers | 25 | Centre-back | Ireland |
| 26 | Kyle Benedictus | £850£850 | £44,200£44k | Dunfermline Athletic | 33 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 27 | George Finney | £840£840 | £43,680£44k | Ayr United | 18 | Right-back | England |
| 28 | Liam Dick | £840£840 | £43,680£44k | Ayr United | 29 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 29 | Babacar Fati | £838£838 | £43,576£44k | Livingston | 25 | Left-back | Guinea-Bissau |
| 30 | Daniel Finlayson | £820£820 | £42,640£43k | Livingston | 24 | Centre-back | Northern Ireland |
| 31 | Jack Baird | £810£810 | £42,120£42k | Raith Rovers | 29 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 32 | Paul Hanlon | £800£800 | £41,600£42k | Raith Rovers | 35 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 33 | Charlie Fox | £780£780 | £40,560£41k | Queen's Park | 26 | Centre-back | England |
| 34 | Nick McAllister | £770£770 | £40,040£40k | Ayr United | 24 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 35 | Dylan Lobban | £770£770 | £40,040£40k | Dunfermline Athletic | 19 | Right-back, central midfielder | Scotland |
| 36 | Len O'Sullivan | £740£740 | £38,480£38k | Ross County | 21 | Left-back | Ireland |
| 37 | Mitchell Robertson | £730£730 | £37,960£38k | Livingston | 20 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 38 | Ricki Lamie | £730£730 | £37,960£38k | Queen's Park | 32 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 39 | Chris Hamilton | £730£730 | £37,960£38k | Ross County | 24 | Centre-back, defensive midfielder | Scotland |
| 40 | Dylan Watret | £720£720 | £37,440£37k | Ayr United | 18 | Right-back | Scotland |
| 41 | Robbie Fraser | £700£700 | £36,400£36k | Dunfermline Athletic | 22 | Left-back, left winger | Scotland |
| 42 | Ryan McGowan | £700£700 | £36,400£36k | Livingston | 35 | Centre-back, defensive midfielder | Australia |
| 43 | Luke Kenny | £690£690 | £35,880£36k | Arbroath | 21 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 44 | Cale Loughrey | £680£680 | £35,360£35k | Partick Thistle | 24 | Centre-back | Canada |
| 45 | Matthew Shiels | £680£680 | £35,360£35k | Queen's Park | 24 | Left-back | Scotland |
| 46 | Richard Chin | £680£680 | £35,360£35k | Ross County | 22 | Right wing-back, right winger | Malaysia |
| 47 | Noa Boutin | £670£670 | £34,840£35k | Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 21 | Left-back | France |
| 48 | Danny Devine | £670£670 | £34,840£35k | Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 32 | Centre-back | Ireland |
| 49 | Remi Savage | £630£630 | £32,760£33k | Inverness Caledonian Thistle | 23 | Centre-back | England |
| 50 | Sean Mackie | £620£620 | £32,240£32k | Arbroath | 26 | Left-back | Scotland |
What each position earns in the Scottish Championship
Average weekly wage of the players aged 22 or over we hold a wage for
Defenders take 33% of what the Scottish Championship 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 Scottish Championship club, added together, a week
Ayr United pay 8 defenders £13,360 a week between them, and Leon King takes 60% of it.
The best-paid defender at every Scottish Championship club
11 clubs, 2026/27, with where each ranks among the league's defenders
| CLUB | PLAYER | WEEKLY | RANK |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ayr United | Leon King | £8,000£8k | 1 |
| Livingston | Adam Montgomery | £5,500£6k | 2 |
| Inverness Caledonian Thistle | Graeme Shinnie | £4,200£4k | 3 |
| Dunfermline Athletic | Aaron Donnelly | £3,500£4k | 5 |
| Ross County | Akil Wright | £2,500£3k | 6 |
| Partick Thistle | Ethan Ingram | £2,300£2k | 7 |
| Greenock Morton | Christopher Cupps | £1,400£1k | 11 |
| Raith Rovers | Jai Rowe | £1,100£1k | 14 |
| Stenhousemuir | Kane Ritchie-Hosler | £900£900 | 19 |
| Queen's Park | Charlie Fox | £780£780 | 33 |
| Arbroath | Luke Kenny | £690£690 | 43 |
The best-paid defender in every men's league
43 leagues, ordered by their best-paid defender. The Scottish Championship ranks 36th.
| 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 Scottish Championship?
Leon King of Ayr United, on £8,000 a week in 2026/27, or £416,000 a year. Adam Montgomery of Livingston is second on £5,500 a week.
How much do Scottish Championship defenders earn?
The average Scottish Championship defender aged 22 or over earns £952 a week, and the median one £700. Defenders take 33% of what the Scottish Championship pays its players of that age.
Which Scottish Championship club pays its defenders the most?
Ayr United, £13,360 a week across the 8 defenders we hold a wage for, led by Leon King on £8,000.
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 Scottish Championship ranks 36th of the 43 leagues on that measure.
Where to next
The same Scottish Championship squads, cut a different way
See the highest paid Scottish Championship players in every position, the best-paid player at every club, what Scottish Championship players are paid at every age, or the Scottish Championship wage bill, club by club.