Inaki Williams Shines in Athletic Bilbao: Salary and Market Value of the Ghanaian Winger

A few years ago, the rising talent of the Basque club caught the attention of many English clubs, and in the summer of 2019, Manchester United offered more than €85 million for the winger. Nonetheless, Inaki Williams wishes to finish his career at Athletic Bilbao and bring as many titles as possible to his home team. In turn, the Spaniards also want to keep their leader: they have already made him the highest-paid player and have included a release clause of €135 million in his contract.

What is Inaki Williams’ salary at Athletic Bilbao?

The Ghana national team winger joined the Basque team back in 2012, signing a contract with the club’s youth team. He then moved to the main squad of the Spanish team, where he has played his entire career and has renewed his contract twice. The Ghanaian footballer last extended his agreement with the club in 2019: the new contract is calculated until June 30, 2028. Over the remaining five years in Spain, the Ghanaian will earn 57,000,000 euros, not including bonuses. For the 2023/2024 season, Williams will receive 11,400,000 euros, which amounts to 219,231 euros per week.

Team Salary Overview: The Highest-Paid Player of the Club and the Highest-Paid African in the League

In the 2023/2024 season, Athletic Bilbao’s total expenditure on salaries amounts to 57,910,000 euros per year, that is, 1,113,654 euros per week. Thus, the Basques close the top five clubs in La Liga with the highest salary expenses. Inaki Williams is the highest-paid player of the Spanish team. Following him is the Spaniard Nico Williams, who earns almost one million euros less. Moreover, the Ghanaian winger remains the only foreign player of the club, correspondingly the foreigner with the highest salary.

Furthermore, Inaki Williams holds the first place among the highest-paid African players in La Liga. Following him, the Ivorian from RC Celta de Vigo, Jonathan Bamba, receives almost three times less. Bamba’s teammate Joseph Aidoo, who is in second place among the highest-paid Ghanaians in the Spanish league, earns more than seven times less.

Salary Comparison Over Career: Consistent Growth After Debut for the First Team

The Ghanaian winger started the 2014/2015 season in the second team of Athletic Bilbao: in 18 games, Williams scored 13 goals and made three assists, which accelerated his transition to the main squad of the Spanish club. The Ghanaian spent the rest of the season in La Liga and scored a goal in the championship, the Cup, and the Europa League. The outstanding debut led to Inaki Williams receiving a new contract, and his salary grew more than 21 times.

By January 2016, the Ghanaian scored 12 goals and attracted the attention of several European clubs, including Manchester City, Liverpool, and Arsenal. To not lose the promising player, the Basques renewed the contract with the winger until 2021. The new agreement doubled Williams’ earnings.

From 2016 to 2019, the Ghanaian winger did not miss a single match in La Liga, registered 55 goal involvements in all tournaments, and played almost one and a half hundred matches. Additionally, Inaki Williams became the first outfield player from any Spanish club to play 100 consecutive league matches since 1993. Thanks to his outstanding performances and solid statistics, the Ghanaian received a new nine-year agreement, and his salary increased more than three times. Thus, the winger now has the largest earnings of his career.

Market Value

Just six months after debuting for the first team of Athletic Bilbao, the Ghanaian’s transfer value increased fourfold. Over the following four years, the transfer sum of Inaki Williams constantly grew: increasing fivefold, in the 2018/2019 season, it reached its peak. Then the Ghanaian winger had the most productive season in his senior career, scoring 15 goals in all tournaments and making five assists, as well as receiving the award for the best goal of the season.

However, after signing a new long-term contract with the club, the market value of the Ghanaian began to decrease. Despite the winger remaining a key player of the Spanish team and even receiving the captain’s armband, by the end of the 2019/2020 season, the sum of his transfer fell by 10 million euros. And by the middle of the following season, Williams’ value had decreased by another one and a half times. 

Since 2021, according to Transfermarkt, the transfer sum of the Ghanaian winger has stabilized at 25 million euros and has not changed since. Nevertheless, Inaki Williams still closes the top three most expensive players of the Spanish team and shares this position with goalkeeper Unai Simon. Moreover, the winger, along with midfielder Thomas Partey, occupies the second place among the most expensive Ghanaians. Only West Ham United F.C.’s midfielder Mohammed Kudus is valued higher: his value is almost twice as much.

Achievements with the National Team

Having dual citizenship, Inaki Williams had the opportunity to represent both Spain and Ghana. The winger received his first call to the Spanish youth team in 2015. Two years later, the Ghanaian made the squad for the Spanish team at the European Championship in Poland. Williams played in every match of the tournament and scored against the Portugal national team, and the Spaniards reached the final, where they lost to the Germans by a minimum score and won the silver medals. Between his debut for the youth national team and the European Championship, the Ghanaian winger managed to play in a friendly match against Bosnia and Herzegovina for the senior Spanish national team. Nonetheless, Inaki Williams never took the field for the Spaniards in official tournaments, maintaining the possibility of changing his sporting nationality. This was taken advantage of by the Ghana Football Federation: in the fall of 2022, the winger debuted for the African national team in the preparatory matches for the World Cup.

In one year with the Ghana national team, Williams managed to play in two major tournaments: the World Cup and the African Cup of Nations. Both in Qatar and Côte d’Ivoire, the winger played in all the group stage matches and did not record any goal involvements, and the Ghanaians failed to break through to the playoffs. In total, for the national team, Inaki Williams played 17 matches and scored a goal against Madagascar.

Football and Financial Prospects

In the 2023/2024 season, Inaki Williams remains the main winger of the Spanish team. He missed only three matches due to the call to the national team for the African Cup of Nations. 

Considering that the Ghanaian’s contract with the club expires only in four years, it is unlikely that the footballer will renew it in the next couple of seasons. Nevertheless, if by the time the agreement expires Inaki Williams maintains his place in the starting lineup, there is a chance that he will receive a new contract: less long-term but on more favorable terms.