“Cristiano Ronaldo named highest paid athlete in the world in 2023, surpassing Lionel Messi, according to Forbes”

First modification: 02/05/2023 – 23:02Last modification: 02/05/2023 – 23:01

A third soccer star, the Frenchman Kylian Mbappé (120 million), completes the podium of the athletes with the highest income in the last 12 months, according to the list published this Tuesday.

Behind them is the American basketball player LeBron James (119.5), the superstar of the NBA Lakers, and the Mexican boxer Saúl ‘Canelo’ Álvarez (110).

At 38 years old, and away from the big European leagues, Cristiano Ronaldo returns to the first place in the ranking that he already held in 2016 and 2017.

This return is a direct consequence of his departure from Manchester United for Saudi Arabia in January. According to Forbes, the combination of his two contracts will bring him 46 million dollars this season, to which are added another 90 million in endorsements in the last 12 months.

Committed to Al-Nassr until 2025, the Portuguese striker will receive an annual salary of $75 million plus “additional marketing opportunities” in this country, the publication noted.

For his part, Messi, who also signed a sponsorship as Saudi Arabia’s tourism ambassador, was unseated from first place on the list despite the 65 million dollars he receives for his sports activity and another 65 million for commercial agreements.

The Argentine star has just received a suspension of several days by Paris Saint-Germain, a club owned by the emirate of Qatar, after a trip to Riyadh without authorization from the French team.

The two soccer superstars aren’t the only ones to symbolize Saudi Arabia’s heavy investments in the sport, with American golfers Dustin Johnson (107 million) and Phil Mickelson (106) ranking sixth and seventh on the list after they in 2022 they will leave the PGA for the new LIV Golf circuit, financed by Riyadh.

‘Canelo’ Álvarez, with an income of 100 million dollars from his appearances in the ring and another 10 million from commercial activities, is the second Latin American in the top 10 ranking positions.

The income of the Mexican does not include those of the next fight against the British John Ryder on May 6 in Guadalajara (Jalisco), since Forbes closed its annual list on May 1.

The top-10 is completed by basketball players Stephen Curry (100.4 million) and Kevin Durant (89.1), eighth and tenth, and Swiss tennis player Roger Federer (95.1), ninth, who retired from the courts at end of last year.

© 2023 AFP