Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney is now English football's biggest earner.

But Rooney, according to France Football, still lags behind Barcelona star Lionel Messi in the earning stakes.

The game's top ten earners were released this week:

1) Lionel Messi (Barcelona) - €31 million 2) Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid) - €27.5 million 3) Wayne Rooney (Manchester United) - €20.7 million 4) Kaká (Real Madrid) - €19.3 million 5) David Beckham (Los Angeles Galaxy) - €19 million 6) Ronaldinho (Flamengo) - €18.3 million 7) Carlos Tevez (Manchester City) - €15.4 million 8) Frank Lampard (Chelsea) - €14.2 million 9) Fernando Torres (Chelsea) - €14 million 10) Yaya Touré (Manchester City) - €13.8 million