These are the 10 highest paid athletes in the world in 2022

Whether they’re a soccer star, basketball hero, or American football player, professional athletes make millions more than just their sporting achievements. Sponsorship and advertising deals also bring in highly paid additional income for top athletes. The wealthiest among them are listed in Forbes’ annual ranking of the highest-paid athletes.

Over the past 12 months, the top ten earners among athletes collectively made $992 million. This is the third highest result of all time: only in 2018 and 2021 did athletes earn more overall.

Giannis Antetokounmpo is a basketball player currently signed to the Milwaukee Bucks. With his annual income, the Greek takes tenth place in the ranking of the best paid athletes. The Greek basketball player earns $39.9 million a year with NBA club Milwaukee Bucks. His endorsement deals net him an additional $41 million. Thus, Giannis Antetokounmpo has earned in total over the past twelve months 80.9 Millions of dollars. With Neymar turning 30 in February, 27-year-old Giannis Antetokounmpo is also the only athlete under 30 in the top ten highest-paid athletes of 2022.

Tom Brady, the greatest quarterback of all time, is once again the ninth highest paid athlete in the world this year. In February 2022, the Taympa Bay Buccaneers quarterback announced the end of his career at the age of 44. Less than 40 days later, Tom Brady had a change of heart and announced that he would play one more season in the NFL with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

After 20 seasons with the New England Patriots, Tom Brady joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020. Brady won the Super Bowl with the Buccaneers in his first season there. Over the past 12 months, Tom Brady earned $31.9 million.

In addition to its TB12 brand and NFT Autograph platform, which Brady co-founded, there are numerous advertising deals with partners such as Under Armour, IWC Schaffhausen and T-Mobile. This brought him another $52 million in coffers. So Tom Brady’s income for the last year is approx $83.9 million. In case Tom Brady retires in the next few years, he is already reportedly working on a deal with Fox Sports. Fox Sports wants the most successful quarterback of all time to be a television pundit. The deal is expected to bring Brady $375 million over the next ten years.

Mexican professional boxer Santos Saúl Álvarez Barragán, also known as Canelo Álvarez, is the eighth highest-paid athlete in the world this year. Álvarez is a multiple light middleweight, middleweight, super middleweight, and light heavyweight world champion. As a professional boxer, Canelo Álvarez made about $85 million last year. Additionally, there’s about $5 million in revenue from advertising partnerships with brands like Hennessy. Canelo Álvarez also owns a taco restaurant in Mexico. Overall, Canelo Álvarez earned 82 million dollars last year.

Swiss tennis player Roger Federer finished seventh this year. While he topped the list in 2020 with income of $106.3 million, he is only seventh this year and still has a respectable income of around $90.7 million. The tennis star’s advertising partners include companies such as Credit Suisse, Rolex and Uniqlo.

Kevin Durant is a professional basketball player currently signed to the Brooklyn Nets of the NBA. His annual income ranks him sixth on this year’s Forbes list of highest-paid athletes. The Brooklyn Nets pay the NBA star a whopping $42.1 million a year. Off the court, Kevin Durant makes around $50 million from endorsement deals and his investments in various companies. Overall, the athlete has gained over the past twelve months $92.1 million.

NBA player Stephen Curry is the fifth highest-paid athlete in 2022 this year. The basketball star, who has been with the Golden State Warriors since turning pro in 2009, earns an annual salary of $45.8 million. High-yield advertising deals – for example with the sportswear manufacturer Under Armor or with the Japanese car manufacturer Nissan – also bring Stephen Curry an additional 47 million dollars a year. All in all, this means an annual income of approx $92.8 million for the NBA star.

According to the “Forbes” 2022 ranking, footballer Neymar Jr. ranks fourth among the best earners among professional athletes. Neymar, who is under contract with the French first division club Paris-Saint-Germain, will receive a salary of approximately $70 million this year.

The Brazilian receives another $25 million in revenue from advertising deals with partners such as Puma and Red Bull. In January 2022, Netflix released a documentary series about the Brazilian footballer. With a good looking annual income 95 million dollars Neymar Jr. is among the highest-paid soccer players in the world. Only two other players earn more than him.

Probably no other footballer polarizes more than Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo. In the summer of 2021, Ronaldo moved from Juventus to Manchester United. According to Forbes, Ronaldo is expected to earn $60 million in the Premier League, which is made up of his salary and bonus payments.

His superstar status in the football industry also brings him a number of advertising deals. Ronaldo’s approximately 442 million Instagram followers also give an idea of ​​the charisma the footballer has around the world, which makes him interesting for many international companies. As the main face of the US sporting goods manufacturer Nike and with numerous other advertising deals, Cristiano Ronaldo collects another 55 million dollars. Together, this translates into an annual income of 115 million dollars and number three in the Forbes ranking.

Second place among the highest paid athletes in 2022 goes to basketball pro LeBron James. The NBA star, who is under contract with the LA Lakers, receives an annual salary of $41.2 million. Sponsorship deals with well-known brands such as Nike, Pepsi, AT&T and Crypto.com provide LeBron James with an additional US$80 million income. Added together, the annual income is worth $121.2 million – no other basketball player earns more.

Argentine footballer Lionel Messi takes first place this year. After more than 21 years at FC Barcelona, ​​​​​​the club and its superstar separated in the summer of 2021. On 10 August 2021, it was officially announced that Lionel Messi would transfer to French top-flight club Paris Saint- Germain. As a soccer player, Lionel Messi has earned $75 million in the past 12 months, according to Forbes.

Messi is regarded as one of the best footballers of all time and is therefore an asset not only to his club but also to numerous advertising partners. Lucrative advertising deals with companies like Pepsi, Budweiser or sporting goods supplier Adidas will make Lionel Messi another $55 million richer this year. Overall, the outstanding footballer took $130 million in the last twelve months. It is therefore the highest earner among athletes in 2022.

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