Premier League refs paid way less than La Liga officials – who earn up to £350k

Premier League referees are earning roughly three times less than their La Liga counterparts, according to reports.

While the English top flight is the most watched worldwide, it is Spain's premier division which is said to boast the highest paid officials in world football. New figures published by Basque outlet El Correo claim they take home a gross annual pay of between €300,000 (£263k) and €400k (£350k).

Although they receive monthly base installments of just €12.5k (£11k), they get add-ons for each domestic league fixture they work as well as for Champions League games they're called up to cover.

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They also receive bonuses for being on VAR duty, all boosting their salary further. Premier League refs, in contrast, are estimated to earn between £70k-£200k, depending on their experience.

Senior officials Anthony Taylor, Andre Marriner and Michael Oliver, for example, will be at the top end of that scale.

While it's very much a comfortable income, it pales in comparison to the likes of Mateu Lahoz, who is La Liga's – and perhaps the world's – most famous blower of a whistle.

Are refs underpaid in England? Let us know in the comments section.

Lahoz stirred controversy at the Qatar World Cup last year when he handed out a record-breaking 17 yellow cards during the quarter final between Argentina and the Netherlands, yet failed to punish Lionel Messi after a number of offences.

After being sent home early from the Middle East, he then managed to trump that in his first La Liga game back – brandishing 18 cards including two reds as Barcelona drew 1-1 with city rivals Espanyol.

Lahoz was subsequently suspended for a number of weeks. He also took charge of Al-Nassr's clash with title rivals Al-Ittihad last month, reuniting with Cristiano Ronaldo who he used to officiate when he was a Real Madrid player.

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