Khadija Shaw will earn at least £1.6m per year at Manchester City: Why the deal is so significant
The deal, signed last Monday, sees Shaw earn a base annual salary of £1m ($1.4m). Guaranteed yearly add-ons will lift it to between £1.6m and £1.7m ($2.3m), according to sources familiar with the matter and documents seen by The Athletic. Shaw’s total yearly package could reach beyond £1.7m if certain performance-related bonuses are met.
The 29-year-old winner joined City in 2021 from French side Bordeaux on an initial three-year deal, before signing a two-year extension in May 2023.
Shaw’s City contract was set to expire this summer but it was announced on Monday that she would be remaining with the Women’s Super League champions after signing a new deal.
The Athletic reported that the contract, signed on the morning of City’s Women’s Super League victory parade on Monday, made the Jamaica international the highest-paid women’s footballer in the world.
There has been controversy in recent months over who is the highest earner in women’s football. Trinity Rodman’s new contract with the Washington Spirit was, according to her agent, Mike Senkowski of Upper 90 Sports Group, worth in excess of $2m annually. However, a source with knowledge of three-time Ballon d’Or winner Aitana Bonmati’s contract figures said the Barcelona midfielder’s current four-year deal is worth more.
The deal reached by City represents a significant increase from the initial offer made by Chelsea, which exceeded an annual salary excluding add-ons of £1m per year.
Chelsea never made more than the one offer and, upon being made aware of City’s improved offer in the days leading up to City’s parade, refused to go higher or enter a bidding war for the three-time WSL golden boot winner.
The knock-on effects of Shaw’s salary on City’s financial structure remain to be seen. As The Athletic reported this week, negotiations for Shaw’s signature throughout the year were stilted by concerns from the board over reshaping the wage structure around one player, as well as the precedent set by doing so.
WSL Football announced new Financial Sustainability Regulations (FSR) for the upcoming season. These include a flexible squad spending cap and strict minimum wage requirements. Total player wage bills are capped at 80 per cent of a club’s standalone revenue, plus owner cash funding up to the limit of £4m or 25 per cent of revenue.
City’s most recent accounts for the 2024-25 season saw the club rank third of the 17 clubs in last season’s WSL and WSL2 for total expenditure for which spending figures are publicly available. Only Arsenal (£21.6m) and Chelsea (£20.2m) exceeded City’s budget of £14m. City reported a total revenue of £10.8m, for the same season, representing a £2.8m net loss.
Shaw scored the first goal in City’s 4-0 FA Cup final victory over Brighton on Sunday, confirming a domestic double for the 2025/26 WSL champions and lifting Shaw’s total goal contribution for the season to 26 goals and seven assists with 14 goals in her last 10 appearances.
City manager Andree Jeglertz praised his striker’s attitude during the contract saga.
“I’m very impressed with how she handled that,” Jeglertz told media after Sunday’s win.
“She’s never shown any kind of mood that has affected her performance. Of course, she’s a person like everybody else. I’m not saying that has affected her, I don’t know about that, but of course she knows about all the writing.
“But at the same time, she has been so professional all the time, always performed, always been a positive person, so no matter what I haven’t seen, I wouldn’t notice any kind of challenges.”
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
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