I’m an ex-Premier League striker who plays with Lionel Messi – but I’m much richer than him

Lionel Messi might be one of the richest athletes on the planet but one Inter Miami player's net worth trumps his.

Messi is arguably the greatest footballer of all time having won a record eight Ballon d'Or awards and he has a bank balance to back it up.

The Inter Miami star is estimated to have a fortune of over £500million, boosted by his massive contracts in Major League Soccer and previous club Paris Saint-Germain.

However, despite a huge net worth, Messi is not even the richest player on his own team.

That prize goes to Leonardo Campana, whose family is worth a reported value of €1billion - which equates to close to £800m.

The striker spent three years at Wolves from 2020 to 2023, though he never made a single appearance for them after signing from Ecuadorian outfit Barcelona UC.

During his three years at the Molineux, Campana was loaned to Portuguese side Famalicao, Swiss team Grasshopper and Inter Miami, eventually signing a permanent deal with the latter for 2023.

For Inter Miami, the Ecuador international has scored 23 times in 65 appearances for the club.

Now in his third year at the MLS side, Campana boasts the ability to best Messi in the financial department.

The 23-year-old has been blessed to be born into fortune. His father is a former tennis player who has since become a politician.

Pablo Campana represented Ecuador at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta before becoming the country's Minister of Commerce.

Since leaving government, Campana Sr founded the company Milenium S.A, a real estate development firm, where is the CEO.

But Campana Jr's family does not stop there when it comes to fame. He is also the great-grandson of ex-footballer Gabriel, who won six league titles in Ecuador in the 1920s.

And his grandmother is also one of Ecuadors' most prominent businesswomen, with an empire that spans across the country and central America.

Among her many business ventures include firms in agriculture, real estate and tourism and she studied at Harvard and the University of London.

Altogether, the family are worth nearly double Messi's fortune of £515m, the 36-year-old has made a pretty penny mainly in football.

Off the pitch, the Argentina international has signed several sponsorship deals including a reported £16m-a-year contract with blockchain company Socios and a lifelong deal with adidas.