Thanks to Modern Education, we know now that a star tutor can make a lot more money than a football superstar.

If Lam Yat-yan wants to, he can put David Beckham to shame in earnings and end up just a tad below HSBC chief executive Stuart Gulliver.

But that’s if he decides to heed a couple of full-page newspaper advertisements inviting him to join Modern Education for HK$85 million (US$11 million) a year.

Not that he is being stiffed by his present employer, Beacon College, which already pays him millions.

Modern’s jaw-dropping offer is a 125 percent premium to the HK$35.5 million the star Chinese language tutor is making at Beacon.

Apparently, Lam already has singlehandedly brought in 40 percent of Beacon’s turnover of HK$327.8 million this year with three months to go.

The open offer puts Beacon on the spot because it flags to investors how much it relies on a single teacher for revenue.

Lam’s contract with Beacon expires next summer.

Should Beacon decide to match Modern’s offer, it would mean at least a HK$40 million hit to its bottom line.

Because Beacon is in the process of listing on the stock exchange, it’s extremely important to make its highest earning teacher happy.

In a Facebook post last night, Lam appeared to turn down Modern’s offer and stick with Beacon.

“For a long time, the school and I have maintained a good relationship, and together, we have built an ideal teaching platform,” he wrote.