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Argentina striker Lionel Messi (R) shakes hands with Portugal's striker Cristiano Ronaldo (L) ahead of kick off of the international friendly football match between the Argentina and Portugal. Getty

It's called the beautiful game and it also pays off beautifully for some of the world's best players. Lionel Messi of Barcelona and Cristiano Ronaldo of Real Madrid have been the two top footballers for several years, and they've been rewarded for their services by their wealthy clubs.

When it comes to wages this season, Ronaldo has a slight edge on Messi. The salary figures, compiled by German journalists in the book "Football Leaks: The Dirty Business of Football," show that Ronaldo and Messi aren't the top earners, but are still in the top six.

Ronaldo earns $594,000 per week and is No. 4 on the list. Messi is No. 6 and earns $546,000 per week. Ahead of Ronaldo are Carlos Tevez (Shanghai Shenhua) at $1 million per week, Oscar (Shanghai SIPG) at $650,000 per week and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Manchester United) at $647,000 per week.

Between Ronaldo and Messi at No. 5 is Ronaldo's teammate Gareth Bale at $569,000 per week.

In November, Ronaldo, 32, signed a contract extension through June 2021 worth $50 million in annual compensation and bonuses. His contract has a buyout clause worth $1 billion.

Messi, 29, is currently in negotiations with Barcelona, as his new contract is set to expire in 2018. A new deal could be announced in the coming weeks, with Messi reportedly set to earn more than $38 million a year in base salary.

When it comes to endorsements, Ronaldo also has a slight edge on Messi, according to Forbes. Ronaldo, who has been with Real Madrid since 2009 earns $32 million a year, compared to Messi at $28 million.

Ronaldo has signed endorsements with Nike, Tag Heuer, Sacoor Brothers suits and Monster headphones. Messi's deals include Adidas, Pepsi, EA Sports, Samsung and Turkish Airlines.

Lionel Messi