These are the 50 highest paid athletes in the world

2021-06-16T16:47:01.711Z

Earning a lot of money with football or tennis - many people can only dream of that. These athletes did it and are now really clearing things up.

Earning a lot of money with football or tennis - many people can only dream of that.

These athletes did it and are now really clearing things up.

The income between May 1, 2020 and May 1, 2021 is decisive for this ranking:

48th place: Robert Lewandowski (soccer)

Last year was the best of his career for Robert Lewandowski.

In 2020 he was named World Footballer of the Year.

In the 2020/21 Bundesliga season, he broke Gerd Müller's almost 50-year-old record with 41 goals.

At his club FC Bayern Munich, the Pole earned $ 27 million, off the pitch, he earned almost another seven million.

48th place: Andres Iniesta (soccer)

In 2018, Andres Iniesta said goodbye to Asia after a total of 22 years at FC Barcelona.

In his old athletic days, the Barca legend wanted to know again at Vissel Kobe in Japan.

In 2021, the midfielder signed a new two-year deal that grossed him $ 30 million annually.

A good four million dollars were added through sponsorship agreements and his own sporting goods brand (Mikakus) as well as his own Bodega Iniesta winery.

48th place: Canelo Alvarez (boxing)

Canelo Alvarez is the only boxer in the Forbes top 50.

The Mexican made most of the money ($ 32 million) from his fights against Callum Smith and Avni Yildirim.

Outside the ring, he made just over two million dollars.

But that should change soon.

In an interview in April 2021, Alvarez announced that he wanted to open 90 to 100 gas stations in Mexico.

46th place: JJ Watt (football)

JJ Watt is the first American football player on the list.

After ten years with the Houston Texans, he moved to the NFL to the Arizona Cardinals, where he signed a lucrative two-year contract.

The three-time Defensive Player of the Year generated $ 27.5 million from football, with the remainder of his total of over $ 34.5 million coming from sponsorship deals.

For example, Watt is the face of Gatorade, Reebok and Subway.

46th place: Novak Djokovic (tennis)

Based on the income from his athletic achievements, Novak Djokovic is not one of the top earners at $ 4.5 million.

The huge sums are not paid in tennis, the biggest chunk comes from advertising deals.

The Serb is under contract with eight brands or corporations and earned an impressive 30 million dollars.

Rank 45: Shaquil Barrett (Football)

It looks the other way around with Shaquil Barrett.

The defensive specialist earned a good $ 34.5 million through football.

Off the field there were just 500,000.

However, one thing is of inestimable intangible value: Barrett can call himself the winner of the Super Bowl.

He played a key role in the win in February 2021 with Tom Brady's Tampa Bay Buccaneers through his dreaded quarterback sucks.

Rank 43: Deshaun Watson (football)

At $ 29.5 million, Deshaun Watson didn't make quite as much as Barrett last season.

But six million through business off the field.

But this money could be less.

Several women accuse Watson of sexual harassment.

Some sponsors - including Nike - therefore terminated the collaboration.

Rank 43: Paul Pogba (soccer)

At Paul Pogba, seven million dollars of his total revenue comes from advertising deals with Pepsi and Adidas.

The Frenchman also signed a contract with Amazon Studios in April 2021.

The content is a documentary series about the life of Pogba, who is often a victim of racism.

The start of "The Pogmentary" is planned for 2022.

As a footballer, he made $ 28.5 million from Manchester United.

40th place: Matt Judon (football)

Matt Judon is still a blank slate as an advertising face.

This is also documented by his low income of a good $ 500,000.

The footballer makes headlines on the pitch.

His strong performances with the Baltimore Ravens - he was the best pass rusher in the last two seasons - earned him a lucrative contract with the New England Patriots.

Last year Judon made $ 35.5 million.

40th place: Aaron Donald (Football)

Aaron Donald from the Los Angeles Rams comes up with exactly the same values.

It is actually surprising that the defensive tackle earns so little from advertising, as he is considered the best defender in the NFL.

In each of his seven professional years to date, Donald has been nominated for the Pro Bowl, the league's all-star game.

He has already been voted Defensive Player of the Year three times.

In 2018, he barely missed the all-time record set in 2001 with 20.5 sacks.

40th place: Anthony Davis (basketball)

Anthony Davis, the first basketball player, ranks 40th.

The NBA star received $ 26 million from the Los Angeles Lakers last year.

The remaining ten million come from other sources.

In 2017, Davis entered into a multi-year partnership with Nike, which gave his income off the court a big boost.

38th place: Chris Jones (football)

Smith / imago

It remains to be seen whether Chris Jones (center) will also be listed in the next Forbes ranking.

This year, the Kansas City Chiefs defensive player is ranked 38th because he collected $ 36.5 million just by signing a new monster contract.

The remaining $ 500,000 comes from sponsors such as Adidas.

38th place: Paul George (basketball)

Paul George received 28.5 million euros from the Los Angeles Clippers.

The rest (8.5 million) came from sponsors such as Nike and YouTube.

At the video portal, the seven-time NBA Allstar has its own channel that has more than 100,000 subscribers.

Rank 36: Mohamed Salah (soccer)

Mohamed Salah has undoubtedly taken Liverpool FC to a new level.

The Egyptian joined the club in 2017 and is now a record scorer.

In 2019 he first won the Champions League with the Reds coached by Jürgen Klopp, followed a year later by the title in the English Premier League.

Salah's class and notoriety is also reflected in his salary: his salary was $ 22.5 million, and he earned another 15 million away from the football field.

Rank 36: Marlon Humphrey (football)

Last season, Marlon Humphrey raked in a whopping $ 37 million including bonuses.

A contract extension with the Baltimore Ravens made him the second best paid cornerback in the NFL in October.

Humphrey's takings off the pitch look like peanuts.

It was just $ 500,000.

Rank 35: Jimmy Butler (basketball)

Like Paul George, Jimmy Butler also has his own YouTube channel.

A proud 700,000 users have subscribed to it (as of June 2021).

The star of the Miami Heat lets his fans participate in his life.

Sometimes he goes hiking, sometimes he visits a restaurant and sometimes he delights the followers with funny challenges.

The popular butler earned $ 27.5 million as well as $ 11 million as an advertising face.

Rank 33: Leonard Williams (Football)

Leonard Williams took a $ 38.5 million salary from the New York Giants.

Only $ 500,000 went to the defensive player's account from other sources.

Rank 33: DeAndre Hopkins (Football)

DeAndre Hopkins hit the headlines in September 2020 when he extended his contract with the Arizona Cardinals by two years and became the highest-paid player in league history with the exception of quarterbacks.

Last year the receiver made $ 38 million.

Hopkins is also bustling off the pitch.

Investing in start-ups and his own real estate company added another million.

31st place: Chris Paul (basketball)

Chris Paul is one of the highest paid players in the NBA.

Base salary and bonuses were $ 33 million between May 2020 and May 2021.

Another $ 7 million came from corporate investments and commercials for a financial services company.

31st place: Kylian Mbappé (soccer)

At the age of 22, Kylian Mbappé already made a $ 26 million salary including bonus payments.

An insane amount for such a young player.

But the attacker is worth his money.

Mbappé was the top scorer in the French premier league three times in a row.

In 2018 he was the youngest player after Pelé to score a goal in a World Cup final and was already able to call himself world champion as a 19-year-old.

No wonder, then, that he was also able to make $ 14 million through advertising deals.

Rank 30: Damian Lillard (basketball)

Damian Lillard opens the top 30. The Portland Trail Blazers basketball player earned $ 25.5 million last season.

Because the point guard is also successful as a rapper and a popular advertising face, his account balance grew by another 15 million dollars.

Lillard is likely to be higher up the Forbes list for years to come.

A contract extension to 2025 will bring Point Guard an incredible $ 196 million in four years.

29th place: Phil Mickelson (golf)

Phil Mickelson is the first golfer in the ranking.

In May 2021, after winning the PGA Championship at the age of 50, he became the oldest major tournament winner.

Of its $ 41 million total revenue, golf makes up just over a million.

Mickelson amassed the fortune through sponsorship agreements.

He also launched his own coffee brand in September 2020.

28th place: Serena Williams (tennis)

Serena Williams also received most of the money from sponsors.

The American has almost 20 partners.

The ranking has an income of 40 million dollars.

Williams, who has already invested in dozens of start-ups, earned just $ 1.5 million from tennis.

27th place: Max Verstappen (Formula 1)

Despite his young age, Max Verstappen is a man of superlatives.

At the age of 17 he became the youngest driver in Formula 1, at 18 years and 228 days he became the youngest winner of a Grand Prix.

Thanks to his fantastic 2020 season, which he finished third overall, Verstappen received $ 41.5 million from his Red Bull racing team.

The Dutchman collected another million from ancillary income.

Rank 26: Myles Garrett (Football)

In 2019, Myles Garrett involuntarily gained notoriety when he hit Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph on the head with the helmet.

Now cleared, the Cleveland Browns' defensive end took in $ 42.5 million last year, plus $ 500,000 off the field.

When his rookie contract ends in 2022, Garrett can look forward to an average of $ 25 million per season.

Rank 24: Trent Williams (football)

NFL star Trent Williams also got a $ 42.5 million salary.

At least another million comes from external sources.

The contract, which Williams signed in March 2021, will add $ 138 million richer for the San Francisco 49ers' superstar tackle in six years - at the time the highest-value O-Liner deal ever.

Rank 24: Jalen Ramsey (football)

Speaking of which we are already endowed with: Jalen Ramsey also joins this illustrious group.

With an average of $ 105 million in five years, the Los Angeles Rams player will earn more than any cornerback before.

Last year, $ 42 million in salary and $ 1.5 million from other businesses went to Ramsey's account.

22nd place: Kyrie Irving (basketball)

At the Brooklyn Nets, Kyrie Irving, whose agent is rap mogul Jay-Z, earned $ 27 million.

In addition there were 17 million sponsors and for advertising.

The point guard is known for his role as the fictional person Uncle Drew, who directed Pepsi since 2012.

Irving has a stake in this character.

Rank 22: Joey Bosa (football)

In the position of the defensive end, Joey Bosa is one of the best players in the NFL.

With his team, the Los Angeles Chargers, the model athlete collected the majority of his income with 43 million dollars.

In addition, around a million came from sponsors and advertising.

20th place: Klay Thompson (basketball)

With the Golden State Warriors, Klay Thompson has long dominated the NBA in recent years.

He and his team won three championship titles, thanks in part to the accuracy of the forward from the three-point line.

This also made Thompson interesting for numerous sponsors.

In addition to his Warriors salary of $ 28.5 million, there was also advertising income of $ 16 million.

20th place: Dustin Johnson (golf)

Dustin Johnson made it to the top of golf with two major wins.

The American is also number one in the world rankings (as of June 2021).

Johnson came to $ 24.5 million in prize money, in addition, he raked in $ 20 million through advertising and sponsorship.

19th place: Giannis Antetokounmpo (basketball)

The "Greek Freak" has been stirring up the NBA for years.

In the best basketball league in the world, Giannis Antetokounmpo is one of the absolute superstars.

His salary at the Milwaukee Bucks was correspondingly high at $ 22 million.

In addition, the Greek took in advertising and sponsorship money of $ 25 million.

Rank 18: Ronnie Stanley (football)

The Baltimore Ravens NFL franchise rewarded Ronnie Stanley with a whopping $ 47 million salary.

While he is in the top league in terms of salary, the offensive tackle still has room for improvement in terms of advertising income.

He was only able to book $ 500,000 in this regard.

17th place: David Bakhtiari (football)

The same as for Stanley also applies to his NFL colleague David Bakhtiari.

He also plays on the offensive tackle position.

His services were worth $ 48 million to the Green Bay Packers.

Bakhtiari was also "only" with $ 500,000 in sponsorship income.

16th place: James Harden (basketball)

Another NBA superstar is James Harden (on the ball, white jersey).

The Guard of the Brooklyn Nets earned a mega salary of 33 million dollars.

In addition, he made a total of 18 million dollars as an advertising face for his sponsors, such as supplier adidas.

15th place: Patrick Mahomes (Football)

NFL quarterback Patrick Mahomes is one of the league's most recognizable faces.

He has already won the Super Bowl with the Kansas City Chiefs.

His salary is correspondingly high, with the Chiefs he was paid $ 32.5 million.

In addition, he came to $ 22 million in revenue outside of the football field.

Rank 14: Russell Westbrook (basketball)

Scoring machine Russell Westbrook dominated the NBA in the past season in terms of triple-doubles.

He also set standards in terms of salaries, with the Washington Wizards rewarding Westbrook with $ 33 million.

Added to this was $ 25 million from advertising and sponsorship support.

Rank 12: Tiger Woods (Golf)

When it comes to the number of major wins, Tiger Woods is the second best golfer of all time.

The American triumphed 15 times at the most important events of his sport.

In terms of income, he was unbeatable in golf.

Woods also had to slow down because of a car accident, and he was only able to collect $ 200,000 in prize money.

For this, 60 million dollars in sponsorship money went into his account.

Rank 12: Naomi Osaka (tennis)

In her homeland of Japan, tennis player Naomi Osaka is an absolute mega-star.

The four-time Grand Slam winner earned huge sums of money with advertising and sponsors in particular.

A total of $ 55 million was raised.

In contrast, Osaka's prize money of five million dollars appears relatively small.

Rank 11: Stephen Curry (basketball)

Together with Klay Thompson, Stephen Curry formed the "Splash Brothers" at the Golden State Warriors.

The two distance throwing specialists taught fear in the NBA.

As a multiple MVP of the league, Curry earned a correspondingly high salary of $ 34.5 million.

In addition, he earned even more money through advertising and sponsorship - namely $ 40 million.

Rank 10: Kevin Durant (basketball)

With Kevin Durant (middle, black jersey), the Brooklyn Nets are affording another NBA superstar.

And the franchise from the New York borough does not come cheap: they had to transfer a salary of $ 31 million to the forward.

Durant also raised $ 44 million through sponsorship money.

9th place: Tom Brady (football)

The great old man of football is over 40 years old and still has not had enough.

NFL legend Tom Brady led the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to Super Bowl triumph in 2021.

Brady is also in a class of his own in terms of salary and was paid $ 45 million.

He also had $ 31 million in sponsorship and advertising.

8th place: Lewis Hamilton (Formula 1)

In the past few years, Lewis Hamilton caused a lot of boredom in Formula 1.

The Briton secured the world title in the Silver Arrow, mostly without risk.

The Mercedes team paid the dominator of the premier class in motorsport a salary of 70 million dollars.

With advertising revenue, Hamilton earned another 12 million.

7th place: Roger Federer (tennis)

He is probably the best tennis player of all time: the Swiss Roger Federer is the big star in the industry.

Even in the advanced athlete's age, he still competes for titles.

Due to injury, he only got $ 30,000 in prize money.

For this, even during the compulsory break, a lot of advertising money flowed into Federer's account, a total of 90 million dollars.

6th place: Neymar jr.
(Soccer)

The Brazilian polarizes on the football field, even if Neymar Jr.

on the ball is undisputedly one of the best in the guild.

This was also reflected in the salary of his club Paris Saint-Germain: PSG paid $ 76 million to the dribble artist.

In addition, Neymar jr.

Rake in $ 19 million in advertising.

5th place: LeBron James (basketball)

Since the departure of NBA legend Michael Jordan, the basketball world has longed for a worthy successor to the megastar.

In the eyes of some fans, Lebron James is a worthy heir.

With the Los Angeles Lakres he won the championship in 2020, his salary with the Californians was $ 25.8 million.

LeBron's promotional deals were worth a lot more money, namely $ 65 million.

4th place: Dak Prescott (football)

We are entering a new sphere.

NFL superstar Dak Prescott was the first footballer to break the $ 100 million barrier.

The Dallas Cowboys quarterback earned a $ 97.5 million salary (the highest pure salary in this ranking) for his work, as well as $ 10 million in his bank account through advertising and sponsorships.

3rd place: Cristiano Ronaldo (soccer)

It is the eternal competition of the past few years: who is the best footballer, Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi?

The Portuguese from Juventus Turin has to admit defeat to his opponent in the Forbes ranking of the highest paid athletes.

CR7 came to a salary of $ 57 million.

Its advertising revenues are also high, at $ 50 million.

But with that he made it onto the podium in third place.

2nd place: Lionel Messi (soccer)

The Argentine from FC Barcelona cracked the magical 100 million euro barrier.

Lionel Messi remained clearly behind Cristiano Ronaldo in terms of advertising and sponsorship income with 27 million euros.

But thanks to an astronomical salary of $ 79.7 million, Messi is ahead of the CR7.

1st place: Conor McGregor (Mixed Martial Arts)

2016 tönte Conor McGregor in Richtung Cristiano Ronaldo, dass er ihn einmal als bestbezahlter Sportler ablösen wird. Jetzt war es so weit. Einnahmen in Höhe von 147,7 Millionen Euro machen den Kampfsportler zur neuen Nummer eins. Kurios dabei: Im vergangenen Jahr bestritt der Ire nur einen einzigen Kampf, der ihm 18 Millionen Euro einbrachte. Einen dreistelligen Millionenbetrag erhielt der UFC-Superstar durch den Verkauf der Mehrheitsanteile seiner eigenen Whiskey-Marke. Insgesamt verdiente er außerhalb des Rings 180 Millionen Dollar.

Source: merkur

All sports articles on 2021-06-16