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Irish Mirror
Irish Mirror
Entertainment
Michelle Cullen

How much Love Island contestants got paid before the villa with sports stars, actresses and some six figure salaries

Although Love Island contestants don't make a fortune for appearing on the show, the experience can completely change their lives and has led to many past contestants becoming millionaires.

Many past islanders have made a career from the show working as influencers, TV stars and even launching their own businesses.

But how much did this year's Love Islanders earn before entering the famous villa?

READ MORE: Inside Irish Love Island star Dami Hope’s family life - from Wexford upbringing to plush Dublin pad

From rugby players, dressage riders, paramedics, nannies, and real estate agents, here is how much the contestants were worth before they entered the villa.

(ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

While some of the cast will no doubt return to their day jobs after appearing on the show, the price comparison site idealo.co.uk has delved into their career histories to see who makes the most money as it stands.

Here's what we know about the kind of salaries the current Love Islanders were on before they were famous.

Jacques O'Neill - €104,808 to €163,035

As a professional rugby player, Gemma Owen's ex-boyfriend Jacques O'Neill is this year's highest earner.

The 23-year-old from Cumbria plays for Castleford Tigers in the Betfred Super League.

He made his professional debut at the age of 20 and was selected for the England Knights Performance squad last year, aimed at developing talented players.

However, a hamstring injury last summer meant he only made six appearances on the pitch.

Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu - €18,632 soap star

Ek in-Su Cülcüloğlu is a Turkish actress who splits her time between London and Istanbul.

(ITV)

The 27-year-old, who hails from Essex, is estimated to earn around €18,632 an episode from her appearances on the Turkish soap opera Kuzey Yildiz, which translates to North Star.

On a date with Liam, who has since left the villa, she revealed she had played some "really weird characters", including a serial killer.

She also stared in another 'reality show' while she was at university.

Ekin-Su had one of the biggest social media followings before she entered this year's villa with 340,000 followers, which could equate to €1,000 per sponsored post.

Her current Insatagram

following alone has increased to almost 400,000 since she's been on Love Island, and she counts the likes of TOWIE's Pete Wicks and James Locke as followers.

Gemma Owen – Over €17,468 per win

At 19, Gemma Owen is the youngest of this year's Love Island contestants and is known for being ex-England footballer Michael Owen's daughter.

Love Island fans are convinced that there is a ‘conspiracy’ on the ITV2 show not to refer to the identity of Gemma Owen ’s famous footballer dad Michael Owen after the bombshell arrived. (Instagram)

Aside from having a famous dad, she is a professional sportswoman in her own right and works as an international dressage rider.

She has competed for England since she was 11 and is thought to earn around €17,468 per win.

She also has her own swimwear brand 'OG Beachwear' which reportedly made a loss in its last financial year.

But with an Instagram following of 82,000 before entering the villa, Gemma could have been making around €800 per sponsored post.

Now, this has risen to over 337,000. So she can expect to learn a lot more when she leaves.

Andrew Le Page - €58,227 plus commission

At 27, Andrew Le Page is one of this year's oldest Love Island contestants – and one of the top earners.

Love Island aired tears recently, when Tasha Ghouri thought she'd missed her chance with Andrew Le Page (ITV)

Originally from Guernsey, he works as a real estate agent and is currently living in Dubai.

His base pay is around €58,227 a year, but this doesn't include commission from when he makes a sale so it could be a lot more.

Tasha Ghouri – It's complicated, but she's doing alright

Love Island's first deaf contestant Tasha Ghouri has pledged to give half the £50,000 prize money to the National Deaf Children's Society if she wins, so she's doing alright for herself.

(ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

The 23-year-old from Thirsk, North Yorkshire, works as a model and professional dancer so it's difficult to calculate how much she earns from her different jobs.

She has performed for choreographer Joshua Base Pilmore at the dance event Move It in London – and was also rumoured to have dated Strictly star, Giovanni Pernice before the show.

In 2021, Tasha went viral for modelling ASOS earrings wearing her cochlear implant – something she calls her proudest achievement so far for the awareness it brought to the deaf community.

Tasha has also modelled for Pull & Bear, Missguided, Pretty Little Thing and Boux Avenue.

With a following of over 150,000 Instagram followers alone, she can expect extensive brand collaborations on the way when she leaves the villa.

Dami Hope - €36,683

He may have dubbed himself a 'Verified Playboy' before entering the Love Island villa, but there's a lot more to Dami Hope than flirting and muscle.

(ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

The 26-year-old Irishman is actually a senior microbiologist who "specialises in conducting studies and research, focusing on micro-organisms".

The Dublin-based scientist is expected to earn around €36,683 a year.

But with over 50,000 followers on Instagram, he can expect to earn a lot more when he leaves the show.

Paige Thorne - €35,634

Welsh girl Paige Thorne has worked as an NHS paramedic for the past two years and is currently earning around €35,634 a year.

(ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

The 24-year-old from Swansea is currently the new female favourite to win, so she can expect her salary to skyrocket if she does.

If she returns to her job as a key worker, she can expect her wages to rise to almost €46,581 in five years.

But with over 150,000 Instagram followers alone, she could also have a career as an influencer after the villa.

Davide Sanclimenti - €33,771

With a Master's in Finance and Banking, you'd think Davide Sanclimenti would be earning a bit more than €33,771 at the age of 27.

Ekin-Su doesn’t seem to be distracted by an on looking Davide (ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

But the Italian stallion – who has a self-proclaimed 'perfect body' – runs his own electronic shisha business outside the villa, and that is only his estimated earnings so far.

Originally from Rome, he supplies shisha devices to bars and clubs in the north of England and is currently based in Manchester.

But with almost 100,000 Instagram followers, he is set to earn big bucks – probably with health and fitness brands – when he leaves the villa, as he hasn't missed a workout in 10 years.

Amber Beckford - €33,305

Before entering the Love Island villa, Londoner Amber Beckford worked as a nanny with an estimated annual salary of €33,305.

(ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

During the week, the 24-year-old says she is "basically a mother" who turns a few heads at the school gates.

But at the weekend, she revealed she turned into an "opinionated wild child".

With over 50,000 followers on Instagram, she can expect to earn a lot more when she leaves Love Island.

Ikenna Ekwonna - €29,113

Ikenna Ekwonna has a degree in Biomed Science and works in pharmaceutical sales in his hometown of Nottingham.

Ikenna was in the kitchen cooking breakfast for Indiyah (ITV)

The 23-year-old is currently earning around €29,113 a year as a graduate but can expect to double this throughout his career.

The Love Islander is also 6ft 5 and works as a personal trainer on the side, and has an Instagram account called @ikennafitness.

His personal Instagram account has now amassed over 47,000 followers, so he can expect to make some money off that too.

Indiyah Polack - €26,126+

Although Indiya Polack works as a waitress in London, earning around €26,126 a year, she also has a side hustle.

(ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

Before entering the villa, she already had an impressive 28,000 followers on Instagram, which could have allowed her to charge brands around €430 per sponsored post.

Since she's been on Love Island, this has increased to a whopping 122,000 in the first week alone, so what she can charge per post will be significantly higher now.

She's hoping her exposure on the show will also make some famous men slide into her DM's.

Luca Bish - €27,250

We know he's called Luca Bish , and he sells fish – but did you know he also has a degree in Fishing and Fisheries Sciences & Management.

(ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

The 23-year-old Brighton lad currently works as a fishmonger in his hometown earning around €27,250 a year, making him the lowest earner in this year's Love Island.

But with his good looks, a possible romance with Gemma and an Instagram following of 175,000, he's set for big things when he leaves the villa.

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