Inter-Milan and Cameroon's thigh-tastic and bulging star striker Samuel Eto'o is set to become the highest paid athlete in the world, report the Wall Street Journal and FOX News.
The 30-year-old Cameroonian forward would be paid a record $485,000 a week by the obscure Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala—located in the war-torn Caucasus region of Dagestan.
In a deal announced Tuesday, Anzhi Makhachkala of the Russian Premier League agreed to pay Eto'o's former club, Inter Milan, a transfer fee of $39 million to acquire the 30-year-old forward.
The team also agreed to a contract with the player that, given Russia's favorable tax rates, would net Eto'o $29 million per season. That not only eclipses the estimated $17.4 million salary Cristiano Ronaldo earns at Real Madrid, it also outstrips the net income of top U.S. stars like Manning, Rodriguez and Kobe Bryant.
The only athlete on earth who might pocket as much is Fernando Alonso, the Spanish Formula One driver for team Ferrari whose contract is worth more than $40 million per year.
The deal is so lucrative because it capitalizes on Russia's ridiculously low tax rate for foreigners, explains WSJ. The tax rate is only 13 percent.
The good news: If Eto'o moves to Anzhi Makhachkala, he wouldn't have to live in the Caucasus! "Because the club is located in Dagestan, which is politically unstable and possibly unappealing to wealthy athletes, the players live and train in Moscow during the week and fly about 1,000 miles to appear in home matches."
Nice work if you can get it.
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AND he gets to hang out with Naomi Campbell too! OKAY...Black people...Russia is calling!
Posted by: TheRevKev | 24 August 2011 at 17:19