A move to Al-Nassr nearly doubled football star Cristiano Ronaldo’s pay, making him the highest paid athlete in the world. Over the previous 12 months, the forward from Portugal made $136 million (£108.7 million). It is said that his deal with Al Nassr is worth more than 200 million euros ($176.5 million) annually.
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According to Forbes
“Skyrocketing league media rights agreements and growing off-field opportunities have already sent athletes’ pay soaring in recent years, but Middle Eastern money is pouring oil on the fire,” Forbes wrote.
“In all, the world’s ten highest-paid athletes collected an estimated $1.11 billion before taxes and agents’ fees over the last 12 months, up 12% from last year’s $990 million and 5% from the record of $1.06 billion set in 2018.”
Forbes’ figures include both on-field earnings – including salaries, prize money and bonuses – and off-field earnings – sponsorship deals, appearance fees and memorabilia and licensing income.
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Ronaldo was closely followed by Paris Saint German’s Lionel Messi and KylianMbappe on this list. Messi, whose future is a matter of speculation, brought home $130 million. Messi has an array of big endorsements under his belt including PepsiCo, Budweiser and Adidas. The footballer gets an estimated $20 million per year from his deal with blockchain-based fan platform Socios.
World’s top 10 highest paid athletes 2023
- Cristiano Ronaldo, football: $136m (£108.7m)
- Lionel Messi, football: $130m (£103.9m)
- KylianMbappe, football: $120m (£95.9m)
- LeBron James, basketball: $119.5m (£95.5m)
- Canelo Alvarez, boxing: $110m (£87.9m)
- Dustin Johnson, golf: $107m (£85.5m)
- Phil Mickelson, golf: $106m (£84.7m)
- Stephen Curry, basketball: $100.4m (£80.2m)
- Roger Federer, tennis: $95.1m (£76m)
- Kevin Durant, basketball: $89.1m (£71.2m)
Quote Source: Forbes
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