How much money Demarai Gray earns in Saudi Arabia as Birmingham City enter talks to sign him | OneFootball

The 28-year-old has been playing in Saudi Arabia for the past two seasons, earning this much...

It is expected that Birmingham City will have plenty of money to throw around this coming summer, with the hopes of reaching owner Tom Wagner's goal of being a Premier League side in the 2026/27 season.

It seems that step one of that plan is to look to bring in players who already have Premier League experience, and still with a lot to give and an ambition to return to the top-flight themselves.

One player that falls into that category is Al-Ettifaq wide man Demarai Gray, who is reportedly setting his sights on a move back to England after spending the last two seasons in Saudi Arabia, per the report from Football League World's sister publication, Give Me Sport.

A move to the incredibly wealthy Saudi Pro League has understandably seen the 28-year-old earn a wedge more than his previous contracts - Football League World has had a look to see exactly how much, and whether, despite Birmingham City's wealth, it may be a step too far to target their former academy graduate.

How much Demarai Gray earns at Al Ettifaq - it's lower than you'd think

According to Capology's estimates, Demarai Gray's contract at Al Ettifaq sees him earn £76,277 per week.

Whilst this is the highest weekly contract of his career thus far, it isn't as high as many would expect a European player playing in the Saudi Pro League to be on, with the belief among most casual fans being that every star playing in Saudi Arabia is on a lucrative six, and maybe even seven, figure deal.

For example, Capology estimates that players such as Aleksandar Mitrovic and Ivan Toney earn north of £400,000 per week, which falls in line with what many believe players earn when they make the move to the Middle Eastern country.

Now, Gray's contract arguably reflects his output, with the Englishman contributing just four goals and five assists in 50 appearances at Al-Ettifaq, including a 2024/25 league campaign where he contributed no goals.

The 28-year-old is under contract at his current club until 2027, but perhaps Gray's two seasons in Saudi Arabia, earning decent money, have him set for a return to where it all began in Birmingham.

The highest earner in the Championship last season, not on loan from another club, Patrick Bamford, earned an estimated £70,000 per week in the second tier. Therefore, perhaps it isn't too far out of the realms of possibility for Gray to be offered a contract similar to his Al-Ettifaq one if Birmingham were to pursue him - although some sort of a decrease would be inevitable.

Entering the league and immediately forming the most expensive squad in it, however, may be a step too far for the Blues. Although that is not to say that Demarai Gray will not accept less money to return to St Andrews.

As for a transfer fee, Give Me Sport reports that the Saudi club are looking for around £8 million for the wideman's services, which would be relatively simple to pay for a club aiming to spend big this summer.

However, whether Blues should fork that out for just one player, who is soon set to turn 29, is up for debate, and many supporters have already reacted to the news by urging the club to try and land Gray for a lower fee.

Ultimately, this deal falls on Gray himself, and whether he feels that, currently, a move to the Championship is good for his career. A former Premier League champion with Leicester City, the 28-year-old scored four and assisted one in his last Premier League season with Everton before his move to Al-Ettifaq.

Birmingham City do have high expectations of reaching the top flight as soon as possible, though. If they can convince Gray that his return to the Championship will be a one-season stop, perhaps a deal could be done.