Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo is the highest-paid sportsperson for the second successive year, Forbes’ annual report of the world’s wealthiest athletes shows.
The Portugal captain Ronaldo topped the influential business magazine’s list for the first time 12 months ago.
The Euro 2016 winner earned $93m (£72.05m) from salary, bonuses and endorsements last year.
The 32-year-old saw his earnings rise $5m (£3.87m) a year on.
The list of elite athletes consists of players from 11 different sports.
Ronaldo has had 12 months for the ages. He was named FIFA’s best player in the world for the fourth time, scored his 600th career goal and secured a contract extension with Real that will pay more than $50 million annually for the next four years.
Ronaldo inked a lifetime deal with Nike worth upward of $1 billion, and on Sunday he led Real Madrid to a second straight Uefa Champions League title. Real is the first team to win back-to-back Champions League titles.
Ronaldo earned $58 million from Real in salary and bonuses, while sponsors kicked in another $35 million.
The Portuguese forward has endorsements deals with Nike, Tag Heuer, Herbalife, Abbott Labs and others.
Meanwhile, his growing line of CR7 branded products now includes; shoes, underwear, fragrance, jeans and a line of hotels.
Sponsors get a good bang for their buck from Ronaldo thanks to his 277 million followers across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. His 121 million Facebook fans are more than any other person in the world. Ronaldo posts actively with mentions or logos of his sponsors displayed. His posts highlighting Nike generated $500 million in media value alone for the sportswear giant during 2016, according to Hookit, which tracks the social engagement of athletes.
Second on the rich list is Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star LeBron James who earns $86.2 million.
LeBron James entered the NBA in 2003 out of high school and within three years established himself as the most dominant force in the game. He’s racked up four MVP awards and 11 first-time All-NBA selections. But it was not until the 2016-17 season that James had the NBA’s top salary.
James signed a three-year, $100 million contract extension with the Cleveland Cavaliers in July after leading the club to their first NBA title in franchise history a month earlier. His $31 million salary this season made him just the third NBA player after Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant to earn $30 million. The salary bump pushed his total earnings, including endorsements and playoff bonuses, to $86.2 million.
Rounding out the top five highest-paid athletes are Lionel Messi ($80 million), Roger Federer ($64 million) and Kevin Durant ($60.6 million). The top five is the same as last year with only James and Messi swapping places.
There’s a significant gap between the top three of Ronaldo, James and Lionel Messi and the rest of the list. Ronaldo is the only athlete making over $90 million in salary and endorsements, with James at $86.2 million and Messi at $80 million.
No one else is making even $70 million. Roger Federer, who ranks fourth on the list, earns the overwhelming amount of his $64 million in endorsements and earned only $6 million for his on-court tennis performance.
The top 100 athletes earned a total of $3.11bn (£2.4bn) over the last 12 months, a slight decrease from last year’s earnings of $3.15bn (£2.43bn).
Athletes from 21 countries are represented among the top 100, but Americans dominate the list with 63 entries thanks to soaring salaries in the NBA, NFL and MLB. A record 32 NBA players made the cut, up from 18 in 2016. Credit the league’s new $24 billion TV contract, which pushed the salary cap up 34% this season. Twenty-nine NBA players made at least $20 million in salary during the 2016-17 season.
Endorsements and appearance fees make up 29% of the total pie for the top 100 athletes with Nike the more prolific with 48 athletes under contract. The Swoosh has committed $9.4 billion in future endorsement contracts to athletes, teams and leagues per its 2016 financial filings.
Basketball dominates with a record 32 NBA players among the top 100, up from 18 in 2016, followed by baseball with 22, American football with 15 and football with nine.
Forbes’ Top 10 Highest-Paid Athletes In the World
Cristiano Ronaldo – Football ($93m/£72.05m)
LeBron James – Basketball ($86.2m/£66.79m)
Lionel Messi – Football ($80m/£61.98m)
Roger Federer – Tennis ($64m/£49.58m)
Kevin Durant – Basketball ($60.6m/£46.95m)
Andrew Luck – American Football ($50m/£38.74m)
Rory McIlroy – Golfer ($50m/£38.74m)
Stephen Curry – Basketball ($47.3m/£36.64m)
James Harden – Basketball ($46.6m/£36.10m)
Lewis Hamilton – Formula 1 ($46m/£35.64m)
Golfer Rory McIlroy is the highest-earning Briton on the list. His $50m (£38.74m) puts him in sixth place – of that, $34m (£26.34m) came from endorsements.
Wales international Gareth Bale, Ronaldo’s Real Madrid team-mate, remains the highest-earning British footballer, with his $34m (£26.34m) putting him 24th.
World number two tennis player Serena Williams is the only woman on the list, in 51st, with $27m (£20.92m) made last year.
Manchester United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic in 30th with $32m (£24.79m), is the highest-placed Premier League footballer.
Anthony Nlebem
