The ‘world’s richest footballer’ has been released by Thai League 1 side Ratchaburi F.C. after making just 18 appearances in over three years at the club.Faiq Bolkiah, 28, is the nephew of Hassanal Bolkiah, the sultan of Brunei and the world’s longest-reigning current monarch. Reports suggest the footballer is worth £16billion.Having celebrated his Golden Jubilee in October 2017, the sultan is nearing 59 years on the throne, but his globe-trotting nephew has undertaken an unusual footballing pathway.Born in the United States, Bolkiah was educated at Bradfield College in Berkshire and spent time in the youth setups of Southampton, Chelsea and Leicester City, but didn’t realise any success in England and made no senior appearances.He eventually made his way to Primeira Liga side CS Marítimo in 2020 but was let go after less than a year and just eight appearances between the youth teams and the B-team.Bolkiah was the first Bruneian player signed into the Thai division, Thai League 1, when he was picked up by Chonburi F.C. in 2021. Faiq Boliah – the world’s richest footballer – is without a club after being released Bolkiah is the nephew the sultan of Brunei and has an estimated worth of £16billionHe spent around four-and-a-half years in the league, transferring to Ratchaburi F.C. in June 2023, before being let go by the club this July.The 28-year-old made just fifty appearances in the Thai first league in almost five years.Losing your job at 28 would be tough for the average worker, but Faiq Bolkiah can luckily rely on the support cushion provided by his uncle that is reported to be in the range of $30-50 billion.This figure has led to Bolkiah being dubbed the “richest footballer in the world” despite not being a direct heir to his uncle’s fortune.Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi boast fortunes of $1.1 billion and $1.2 billion respectively, according to Forbes.Hassanal Bolkiah’s fortune has largely been propped up by Brunei’s oil and natural gas reserves and was briefly declared by Forbes to be the richest man in the world in 1997, overtaking, and then being overtaken by, Bill Gates.The royal family in Brunei controls almost all aspects of the economy, which allowed the sultan and his brother, Faiq Bolkiah’s father, Jefri, to build a car collection reportedly consisting of over seven thousand vehicles at its height.The $5billion car collection is kept in a compound surrounded by a razor-wire-topped wall and patrolled by armed Gurkhas and German Shepherds.