The highest paid professional athletes are the stars of all the sports, world wide footballers that reign supreme. They make so much money, they can afford to have personal assistants just to do their laundry. These million-dollar athletes are the pinnacle of success in their sport and earn huge amounts. However, they often spend a lot of this money on endorsements and other outside deals before taking home their salary which can leave these professional athletes short on cash some times.
Without further ado, let’s take a look at the top 6 highest paid professional athletes.
- Lionel Messi
This superstar takes home more than US$130 Million in a calendar year averaging out at more than US$10 Million a month. He is sponsored by Adidas, Pepsi, Banco Sabadell. Lionel Messi, an Argentine, recently signed with French league PSG, after playing for Barcelona for more than 16 years. He is one of the best, if not the best, decorated football player of all time having more than 30 titles to his name. - Lebron James
The most marketable athlete in the world, Lebron James took home more than US$121.1 million last year. He is sponsored by Nike, Coca-Cola, Kia Motors and many other major companies. Dubbed ‘King James’, he plays for the LA Lakers of NBA. James has 4 NBA championships and 4 MVP awards to his name. - Cristiano Ronaldo
The third highest paid athlete in the world is Cristiano Ronaldo having raked an estimate of US$120 million in 2021. He is a Portuguese footballer playing for Manchester and Portugal. He has endorsement deals with Gillette, Adidas, Upper Deck and Beats by Dre making him one of the highest paid athletes in the world. Ronaldo has won 5 Ballon d’Or trophies, 5 Champions League titles and 5 La Liga titles during his career. - Neymar Jr.
Neymar is a Brazilian professional footballer playing for Paris Saint-Germain. Last year, he is estimated to have earned an average US$95 million with prospects of earning even more this year. He has sponsorship dealings with Nike, Air Jordan, Red Bull, MCDONALD’s and many other companies. - Roger Federer
The most decorated Wimbledon player of all time, Roger Federer earned more than US$90 Million last year. He has a sponsorship deal with Nike and Rolex, the watchmaker. He is among the most recognizable athletes in the world and has won almost every title there is to win, including 19 grand slam titles. - Tom Brady
One of the most decorated quarterbacks in all the sports, he took home a salary of US$76 Million last year. He has endorsement deals with Nike and they manufacture his jersey. He is one of the most accomplished quarterbacks in NFL history and is known as ‘Tom Terrific’.