How Stoke City's wage bill compares to the rest of the Championship | OneFootball

The Potters sit mid-table in terms of wage bill for 2024/25

Stoke City have an unfortunate recent history of paying big fees and wages for players and not receiving much on the pitch in return, but they will hope that their current crop can be different this season.

Stoke have struggled in the Championship in years gone by and the club has had to reduce their wage budget considerably in recent times as a result of their poor form year-on-year.

The Potters brought in numerous new faces in the summer transfer window while letting go of some key senior players and with the help of Capology, we are taking a look at the club's estimated wage bill compared to the rest of the second-tier.

It must be taken into consideration that the data provided by Capology are estimations and not official figures.

According to Capology's estimates, Stoke have the 11th-biggest wage bill, at £293,500 in wages per week, in the Championship for the 2024/25 season, which works out at £15,262,000 per year, and makes sense given the club's sizeable finances compared to their under-performance in recent seasons.

Capology states that Leeds United boast the highest wage bill for this term, at £708,000 per week, which is a huge jump from second place Burnley, who pay their squad an estimated gross amount of £596,000 every week, with both teams in the hunt for promotion back to the Premier League this season.

There is a running theme in the top Championship wage bills, in that most of the teams have played in the top flight in the last few years, with West Brom, Sheffield United, Luton Town, Norwich City, Watford and Cardiff City all making up the top eight, having played in the Premier League more recently than the Potters.

Middlesbrough and Sheffield Wednesday make up the top ten above Stoke, with the Owls at £297,038 per week, and Hull City are just below the Potters at an estimated £285,162 per week, according to Capology.

The rest of the teams below the Tigers all pay a relatively similar gross amount to their playing squads, from Bristol City in 13th at £260,077, to QPR in 22nd at £208,462.

The bottom two teams are each recent League One promotion winners in Plymouth Argyle and Portsmouth, who pay their players a gross amount of £172,800 and 138,500 respectively.

Ben Gibson is Stoke's highest earner based on estimations

According to Capology's estimates, centre-back Ben Gibson is the highest earner in the Stoke first-team squad in the 2024/25 season.

Gibson joined the Potters from Norwich City on a free transfer this summer after his contract expired at Carrow Road, and he has immediately come in to be their highest earner on an estimated £35,000 per week, as well as the new club captain.

He is the Potters' estimated highest earner by some way, with striker Sam Gallagher in second on £25,000 per week after his move from Blackburn Rovers in the summer.

Fellow centre-back Ben Wilmot is Stoke's third-highest weekly earner, based on Capology's estimates, on £20,000 per week, while first-team regulars Viktor Johansson, Eric Bocat and Enda Stevens all seemingly earn less than half of what the 31-year-old does in a week, on an estimated £15,000.

Some of Stoke's surprisingly low earners, according to Capology, include last season's Player of the Year Bae Jun-ho, who earns an estimated £5,000 a week, and standout Dutch midfielder Wouter Burger, who is on a reported £7,000 per week.