Throughout Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool tenure, supporters have debated the identity of the team’s most important player. Alisson, Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah are the names most often mentioned in discussions, but Trent Alexander-Arnold and former Reds midfielder Fabinho also feature.
You can make a case for any of these guys, but one thing is clear: none of them can match Salah in terms of stardom. The Egyptian is by far the most followed Reds player on Instagram, with 62.5 million followers, more than four times that of nearest challenger Van Dijk (14.9 million). In fact, as of June 2023, Salah is the seventh most followed football player in the world, according to GiveMeSport.
So it’s no surprise to see him crack SportsPro’s list of the 50 Most Marketable Athletes of 2023, released Tuesday. Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi leads, Los Angeles Lakers icon LeBron James in second, USWMT and San Diego Wave forward Alex Morgan Ranked third.
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The rankings, compiled in conjunction with North Star Solutions Group, are based on scores across multiple categories, including brand strength and addressable market. Salah is one of 20 footballers on the list, six of whom are from the Premier League.
Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka perhaps surprisingly leads the group (26th), while Manchester City’s Erling Haaland despite breaking last season’s league goalscoring record 7 places behind. He is one ahead of Chelsea’s Thiago Silva (34th) and three ahead of Tottenham Hotspur’s Son Heung-min (36th), while Salah is ranked 39th, beating Marcus Rashford of Manchester United (No. 40).
liverpool.com says: If Salah wasn’t one of the best players in the world, he wouldn’t be on this list at all. He has won the PFA Player of the Year Award twice, the Premier League Golden Boot three times and is one of only four players to have been nominated for the Ballon d’Or the last five times.
He also happens to be the most famous Arab athlete on the planet, being named GQ Middle East Person of the Year in 2019 and even making the Time 100 (a list of the most influential people in the world) that same year. This means that for Liverpool he is not only a goalscoring machine but also a huge asset in attracting sponsors and raising the club’s global profile.
This is no doubt a big reason why Saudi Pro League club Al-Ittihad were so keen to sign him, making a massive $182m (£150m/€173m) bid at the end of the recent transfer window ( from Sky) Sports).If he does leave Liverpool, the Reds will lose more than just a footballer – FSG will no doubt be acutely aware of this, as shareholder LeBron James will constantly remind us.