SCOTTISH PREMIERSHIP · DEFENDERS · 2026/27
Highest paid Scottish Premiership defenders
Ben Godfrey is the best-paid defender in the Scottish Premiership, on £80,000 a week at Rangers, or £4,160,000 a year. Kieran Tierney is next on £50,000 at Celtic. We hold wages for 128 Scottish Premiership defenders in 2026/27.
BEST PAID £80k
AVERAGE WAGE £5,860
SHARE OF WAGE BILL36%
TOP 10 A WEEK £306k
WAGES HELD128
The 50 best-paid Scottish Premiership 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 | Ben Godfrey | £80,000£80k | £4,160,000£4.2m | Rangers | 27 | Centre-back | England |
| 2 | Kieran Tierney | £50,000£50k | £2,600,000£2.6m | Celtic | 28 | Left-back | Scotland |
| 3 | Cameron Carter-Vickers | £37,000£37k | £1,924,000£1.9m | Celtic | 27 | Centre-back | United States |
| 4 | Kosta Nedeljković | £30,000£30k | £1,560,000£1.6m | Rangers | 19 | Right-back | Serbia |
| 5 | Dujon Sterling | £22,000£22k | £1,144,000£1.1m | Rangers | 25 | Defender, defensive midfielder, central midfielder | England |
| 6 | Alistair Johnston | £20,000£20k | £1,040,000£1.0m | Celtic | 26 | Right-back | Canada |
| 7 | John Souttar | £18,000£18k | £936,000£936k | Rangers | 28 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 8 | Auston Trusty | £17,000£17k | £884,000£884k | Celtic | 26 | Centre-back | United States |
| 9 | Calvin Ramsay | £17,000£17k | £884,000£884k | St Mirren | 21 | Right-back | Scotland |
| 10 | Anthony Ralston | £15,000£15k | £780,000£780k | Celtic | 26 | Right-back | Scotland |
| 11 | James Penrice | £12,000£12k | £624,000£624k | Rangers | 26 | Left-back | Scotland |
| 12 | Clinton Nsiala-Makengo | £8,400£8k | £436,800£437k | Rangers | 21 | Centre-back | France |
| 13 | Ross McCrorie | £7,700£8k | £400,400£400k | Rangers | 27 | Right-back | Scotland |
| 14 | Matai Akinmboni | £7,500£8k | £390,000£390k | Dundee | 18 | Centre-back | United States |
| 15 | Liam Scales | £7,000£7k | £364,000£364k | Celtic | 26 | Centre-back | Ireland |
| 16 | Tuur Rommens | £7,000£7k | £364,000£364k | Rangers | 22 | Left-back | Belgium |
| 17 | Emmanuel Fernandez | £6,300£6k | £327,600£328k | Rangers | 23 | Centre-back | England |
| 18 | Jason Kerr | £6,100£6k | £317,200£317k | Hibernian | 28 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 19 | Marko Ivezić | £5,900£6k | £306,800£307k | Hibernian | 23 | Centre-back, defensive midfielder | Serbia |
| 20 | Felix Passlack | £5,300£5k | £275,600£276k | Hibernian | 27 | Full-back | Germany |
| 21 | Kristers Tobers | £5,000£5k | £260,000£260k | Aberdeen | 24 | Centre-back | Latvia |
| 22 | Bert Esselink | £4,500£5k | £234,000£234k | Dundee United | 25 | Centre-back | Netherlands |
| 23 | Adam Mayor | £4,500£5k | £234,000£234k | Hibernian | 21 | Left-back, winger | England |
| 24 | Emmanuel Gyamfi | £4,300£4k | £223,600£224k | Aberdeen | 20 | Left-back, left winger | Germany |
| 25 | Joe Wright | £4,100£4k | £213,200£213k | Dundee | 30 | Centre-back | Wales |
| 26 | Josh Mulligan | £4,100£4k | £213,200£213k | Hibernian | 22 | Right wing-back, defensive midfielder | Scotland |
| 27 | Mats Knoester | £3,900£4k | £202,800£203k | Aberdeen | 26 | Centre-back | Netherlands |
| 28 | Olwethu Makhanya | £3,800£4k | £197,600£198k | Rangers | 21 | Centre-back | South Africa |
| 29 | Bradley Halliday | £3,500£4k | £182,000£182k | Dundee | 30 | Centre-back | England |
| 30 | Chris Cadden | £3,400£3k | £176,800£177k | Aberdeen | 28 | Right-back, attacking midfielder | Scotland |
| 31 | Dan Happe | £3,400£3k | £176,800£177k | Aberdeen | 26 | Centre-back | England |
| 32 | Emmanuel Longelo | £3,300£3k | £171,600£172k | Motherwell | 24 | Left-back | England |
| 33 | Grant Hanley | £3,200£3k | £166,400£166k | Hibernian | 33 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 34 | Jordan Obita | £3,100£3k | £161,200£161k | Hibernian | 31 | Left-back, left winger | Uganda |
| 35 | Jack Iredale | £3,100£3k | £161,200£161k | Hibernian | 29 | Centre-back | Australia |
| 36 | Johnly Yfeko | £3,100£3k | £161,200£161k | Kilmarnock | 22 | Centre-back | England |
| 37 | Nesta Guinness-Walker | £2,900£3k | £150,800£151k | Aberdeen | 25 | Centre-back | England |
| 38 | Nicky Devlin | £2,900£3k | £150,800£151k | Aberdeen | 31 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 39 | Malachi Fagan-Walcott | £2,900£3k | £150,800£151k | Heart Of Midlothian | 23 | Centre-back | England |
| 40 | Ross Graham | £2,700£3k | £140,400£140k | Dundee United | 24 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 41 | Ryan Strain | £2,700£3k | £140,400£140k | Falkirk | 28 | Right-back | Australia |
| 42 | Rocky Bushiri | £2,700£3k | £140,400£140k | Hibernian | 25 | Centre-back | Congo - Kinshasa |
| 43 | Alan Forrest | £2,500£3k | £130,000£130k | Dundee | 28 | Right wing-back, winger | Scotland |
| 44 | Adam Forrester | £2,500£3k | £130,000£130k | St Johnstone | 20 | Full-back | Scotland |
| 45 | Alex Gogic | £2,500£3k | £130,000£130k | St Mirren | 31 | Centre-back, defensive midfielder | Cyprus |
| 46 | Dane Murray | £2,400£2k | £124,800£125k | Celtic | 22 | Centre-back | Scotland |
| 47 | Drey Wright | £2,400£2k | £124,800£125k | Dundee | 30 | Full-back, right winger | England |
| 48 | Dario Naamo | £2,400£2k | £124,800£125k | Dundee United | 20 | Right-back, winger | Finland |
| 49 | Will Ferry | £2,400£2k | £124,800£125k | Dundee United | 24 | Left-back | Ireland |
| 50 | Dylan Williams | £2,400£2k | £124,800£125k | Motherwell | 21 | Left-back, defensive midfielder | England |
What each position earns in the Scottish Premiership
Average weekly wage of the players aged 22 or over we hold a wage for
Defenders take 36% of what the Scottish Premiership 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 Premiership club, added together, a week
Rangers pay 12 defenders £195,395 a week between them, and Ben Godfrey takes 41% of it.
The best-paid defender at every Scottish Premiership club
12 clubs, 2026/27, with where each ranks among the league's defenders
| CLUB | PLAYER | WEEKLY | RANK |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rangers | Ben Godfrey | £80,000£80k | 1 |
| Celtic | Kieran Tierney | £50,000£50k | 2 |
| St Mirren | Calvin Ramsay | £17,000£17k | 9 |
| Dundee | Matai Akinmboni | £7,500£8k | 14 |
| Hibernian | Jason Kerr | £6,100£6k | 18 |
| Aberdeen | Kristers Tobers | £5,000£5k | 21 |
| Dundee United | Bert Esselink | £4,500£5k | 22 |
| Motherwell | Emmanuel Longelo | £3,300£3k | 32 |
| Kilmarnock | Johnly Yfeko | £3,100£3k | 36 |
| Heart Of Midlothian | Malachi Fagan-Walcott | £2,900£3k | 39 |
| Falkirk | Ryan Strain | £2,700£3k | 41 |
| St Johnstone | Adam Forrester | £2,500£3k | 44 |
The best-paid defender in every men's league
43 leagues, ordered by their best-paid defender. The Scottish Premiership ranks 12th.
| 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 Premiership?
Ben Godfrey of Rangers, on £80,000 a week in 2026/27, or £4,160,000 a year. Kieran Tierney of Celtic is second on £50,000 a week.
How much do Scottish Premiership defenders earn?
The average Scottish Premiership defender aged 22 or over earns £5,860 a week, and the median one £2,400. Defenders take 36% of what the Scottish Premiership pays its players of that age.
Which Scottish Premiership club pays its defenders the most?
Rangers, £195,395 a week across the 12 defenders we hold a wage for, led by Ben Godfrey on £80,000.
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 Premiership ranks 12th of the 43 leagues on that measure.
Where to next
The same Scottish Premiership squads, cut a different way
See the highest paid Scottish Premiership players in every position, the best-paid player at every club, what Scottish Premiership players are paid at every age, or the Scottish Premiership wage bill, club by club.