What is Xherdan Shaqiri's Net Worth?
Xherdan Shaqiri is a professional footballer who has a net worth of $25 million. Xherdan Shaqiri plays as a winger for the MLS club Chicago Fire. He previously played for various European clubs, including Basel, Bayern Munich, Stoke City, and Liverpool. A Swiss citizen, Shaqiri has also played for the Switzerland national football team at several major tournaments, earning over 120 caps.
Chicago Fire Contract
Xherdan Shaqiri's contract with the Chicago Fire pays him a base salary of $7.3 million. In 2023 he earned $8.1 million. Even at just the base salary level, Xherdan Shaqiri is the highest paid player in the MLS. For perspective, the average MLS player makes $473,000 per year. Players making the league minimum are paid $65,000 per year.
Early Life
Xherdan Shaqiri was born on October 10, 1991 in Gjilan in what was then Serbia, Yugoslavia. His parents are Kosovo Albanians, and he has three siblings. In 1992, the family immigrated to Switzerland, settling in Augst in Basel-Country. Shaqiri began playing football in 1999 with his hometown club SV Augst.
FC Basel
Shaqiri joined FC Basel in 2001, playing for the club's youth team. He did so until 2009. Meanwhile, from 2007 to 2009, he played for Basel's reserve team in the Swiss 1. Liga. After that, Shaqiri signed a professional contract with the club and made his debut in the 2009-10 season. At the end of the season, he and Basel won the national double: the Swiss Super League title and the Swiss Cup. The club went on to win the Swiss Super League title again in the 2010-11 season, followed by another national double in the 2011-12 season.
Bayern Munich
For the 2012-13 season, Shaqiri was transferred to the German Bundesliga club Bayern Munich. The club had a terrific season, winning the Bundesliga title, UEFA Champions League title, and DFB-Pokal title. This was the first treble ever won by Bayern Munich. Moreover, the club claimed the 2013 UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup. He continued playing with Bayern Munich until early 2015, by which time he was already the most decorated Swiss footballer of all time.
Inter Milan
Shaqiri transferred to the Italian Serie A club Inter Milan in early 2015. He scored his first league goal in February in an away win over Atalanta, and four days later scored his first European tournament goal for Inter in a draw with Celtic.
Stoke City
On August 11, 2015, Shaqiri moved to the English club Stoke City for a club-record fee of £12 million. In his first season with the team, he made 32 appearances as Stoke finished in ninth place. The next season, Shaqiri made 22 appearances as the club finished in 13th position. In his third and final season with Stoke in 2017-18, he played in 38 games and finished as the club's top goalscorer, with eight goals.
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Liverpool
Shaqiri signed with Liverpool in the summer of 2018. Later in the year, he had a memorable match when he scored twice in a 3-1 victory over Manchester United, giving Liverpool its first league victory over United since early 2014. Closing out the season, Liverpool won the 2019 UEFA Champions League. A couple of months after that, the club won the UEFA Super Cup. In December, Shaqiri helped Liverpool win the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup. He finished the 2019-20 season on a very high note as Liverpool claimed its first Premier League title in 30 years. Shaqiri went on to play one more season with the club.
Lyon
In the summer of 2021, Shaqiri signed with the French Ligue 1 club Lyon on a contract lasting until 2024. However, he was unsatisfied with Lyon due to a lack of playing time, and left in early 2022.
Chicago Fire
Shaqiri went to the United States and signed with the MLS club Chicago Fire in February of 2022. His transfer signing was the most expensive in the club's history, at $7.5 million.
National Team Career
On the international stage, Shaqiri has played for the Switzerland national football team at all levels of competition. After playing for the under-17, under-18, under-19, and under-21 teams, he made his senior national team debut in 2010 in a friendly match against Uruguay. Shaqiri was subsequently included in Switzerland's 2010 FIFA World Cup squad. He scored his first goal for the senior national team in a Euro 2012 qualifier against England. Shaqiri returned to the FIFA World Cup in 2014 and scored a hat-trick for Switzerland in a group-stage match against Honduras. Switzerland was ultimately eliminated in the round of 16. Shaqiri later helped Switzerland reach the last 16 in Euro 2016.
Shaqiri played in his third FIFA World Cup in 2018. In the tournament, he scored his 21st international goal, making him one of Switzerland's top ten scorers of all time. The following year, Shaqiri helped lead his country to the 2019 UEFA Nations League Finals, where they finished in fourth place. He went on to play in the postponed Euro 2020, and after that in the 2022 FIFA World Cup. In the latter tournament, Shaqiri became only the fifth Swiss player ever to reach 100 caps. He later played for Switzerland in Euro 2024, scoring his 32nd international goal and helping his country reach the quarterfinals.
