The Top 5 Richest Athletes In The World
Elite professional athletes are making more money now than ever before in the world of sport.
With respective leagues signing mega contracts with TV channels and athletes being endorsed by major companies, they are in place to bring home as much money as possible and it will only continue to grow.
Oddschecker took a deep dive into the top 5 richest athletes in the world in 2019.
Here is the list we accumulated below.
Lionel Messi - $127 million per year
Arguably the greatest soccer player, Barcelona’s Lionel Messi is the highest paid athlete in the world.
The Argentina native began his career with Barcelona in 2003. Since then, he’s played more than 700 matches for the club, has scored over 600 goals and won 34 club titles, 10 of which were La Liga championships.
Messi’s current contract with Barcelona pays him over $80 million per year and he has a lifetime endorsement contract with Adidas.
Cristiano Ronaldo - $109 million per year
Juventus ace Cristiano Ronaldo is the second highest paid athlete. He joined the Italian club in 2018 after he played nine years in Spain for Real Madrid.
Ronaldo has won FIFA's Player of the Year award five times and is the all-time leading goal scorer in the history of the UEFA Champions League. He makes $44 million in endorsements per year, which includes NIKE, Herbalife and Electronic Arts.
Neymar - $105 million per year
Neymar, the Brazilian superstar, comes in at the No. 3 spot.
He is currently on a five-year, $350 million contract with French club Paris Saint-Germain. He makes $30 million in endorsements from Beats Electronics, Gillette, Mastercard, McDonald’s, NIKE and Red Bull.
His transfer from Barcelona to PSG remains the most expensive in the world at €222 million.
Canelo Alvarez - $94 million per year
Thanks to streaming service DAZN, which committed $365 million to Canelo Alvarez to showcase his next 11 fights in the ring, the boxer is the fourth-highest paid athlete in the world.
Alvarez has made about $50 million combined for his first two fights on DAZN but he is expected to earn at least $35 million per fight moving forward.
Roger Federer - $93.4 million per year
The greatest men’s tennis player of all-time, Roger Federer comes in at No. 5.
Federer has won around $124 million in prize money over his illustrious career, but his off-court earnings from appearances and endorsements triumphs every athlete on this list.
Federer has earned $86 million from endorsements this year which includes sponsors Credit Suisse, Mercedes-Benz and Rolex.