No matter if it is in England, Spain or Saudi Arabia, Cristiano Ronaldo was again the first place in the list of highest paid athletes , according to Forbes. According to the report, Ronaldo earned $260 million in total , a considerable increase compared to last year’s $136 million.

Contrary to last year, Lionel Messi was not second on the list, a position now occupied by Spanish golfer Jon Rahm . It is worth mentioning that Ronaldo and Rahm are the two athletes who have received the most money as part of their sports contracts, and both are part of the growing sports scene in Saudi Arabia.

Messi fell to third place, with 135 million dollars in the last 12 months , while two basketball players, LeBron James (128.2 million) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (111 million) close the Top 5.

CR7 once again dominates the list

Last year, Cristiano Ronaldo was at the top of the list of highest-paid athletes by $6 million above the Argentine soccer player. This year the difference between the two was 125 million dollars . Rahm received 218 million, 42 less than the Portuguese.

There are a couple of factors that have helped Ronaldo separate himself from the rest. To start, salaries in the Saudi Professional League are above any other football league. CR7 received 200 million dollars from his club, Al Nassr, more than any other footballer, despite not adding any titles to the club’s account . .

The next three footballers in terms of salary were Karim Benzema (100 million), Kylian Mbappé (90 million) and Neymar (80 million) . Benzema and Neymar also play in Arabia, while Mbappé belongs to PSG, whose owner is part of the Sovereign Investment Fund created by the emir of Qatar.

To that we must add Cristiano’s media personality, which has earned him 60 million in off-field earnings . The 60 million is less than some other figures, but it makes a difference at the top of the list. Rahm, for example, barely earned 20 million off the fairways.

Messi increases his earnings but loses ground

In total, the “Flea” will receive 5 million dollars more compared to last year, but fell one place on the list. The main difference is the salary of the team itself, since the Argentine receives 65 million from Inter Miami, while off the field he adds 70 million in earnings , only below LeBron James’ 80 million.

It should be remembered that the economic statutes of the MLS are very strict, since the League has a salary cap; in fact, Messi earns more than the total salary of 25 of the clubs in the American league .

Behind Messi are James and Giannis, while the only other basketball player is Steph Curry (102 million), in ninth position. Between Antetokounmpo and Curry there are three more footballers, the aforementioned Mbappé (110 million), Neymar (108 million) and Benzema (106 million).

Completing the Top 10 is the highest-paid American football player, Lamar Jackson, quarterback of the Baltimore Ravens, with $100.5 million , just half a million more than Joe Burrow, who occupies the same position with the Cincinnati Bengals.

‘Canelo’ falls out of the Top 10

In 2023, Saúl “Canelo” Álvarez occupied fifth position in the count of the highest paid athletes. However, this year it has fallen to step 14 , with 85 million for the year. Álvarez is still the highest paid boxer in the world, however, he barely earned 2 million more than Anthony Joshua.

The main difference has been the Guadalajara’s earnings in the ring, as they fell from 100 to 75 million. Perhaps, at least in part, because of the fights against unattractive rivals for boxing fans.

Other athletes who fell out of the Top 10 were retired tennis player Roger Federer, as well as golfers Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson , who are not even on the list of the 50 highest-paid athletes this year.

Peculiar issues of the list

With the retirement of Serena Williams and a transitional panorama in women’s sports, no athlete reached the Top 50 . Women’s tennis has three high-level tennis players in Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina, while Coco Gauff threatens to enter the conversation, so they may enter the list in the future.

Another name to watch is Caitlin Clark . While the basketball player’s salary may not increase in the coming years, her sponsorship income may skyrocket as she has become one of the best-known faces in American sports .

Despite the million-dollar contract signed by baseball player Shohei Ohtani, he is only in step 13, with 85.3 million dollars . Ohtani and Texas Rangers pitcher Max Scherzer are the only players on the list.

The other discipline that has elements in the Top 50 is motorsport, with two Formula 1 drivers: Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton. The Dutch champion received 81 million dollars, to occupy position 17, while Hamilton is 4 steps lower, with 69 million .