Home » 100 Highest-Paid Athletes in the World: Ronaldo atop, no women included

100 Highest-Paid Athletes in the World: Ronaldo atop, no women included

Soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has once again shown his class, topping the 2024 list of highest-paid athletes with a jaw-dropping $260 million in earnings!

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Sportico’s list of 100 highest-paid athletes: Ronaldo ranked #1

According to Sportico, the 100 highest-paid athletes from eight sports and 27 countries raked in a total of $6.2 billion in 2024. This sum includes $4.8 billion from salary and prize money plus another $1.4 billion from endorsements and off-field deals.

Ronaldo leads the pack, thanks to his move to Al Nassr and his legendary performances with the Portuguese national team. He even added an extra $45 million from off-field endorsements. Hot on his heels is Golden State Warriors’ point guard Stephen Curry, who earned $153.8 million, riding high on his stellar performance at the Paris Olympics where he helped Team USA win gold. Tyson Fury, Lionel Messi, and LeBron James round out the top five.

No Women in the list

Surprisingly, not a single woman cracked the top 100 this year, even as women’s sports viewership continues to soar. Last year, American tennis star Coco Gauff was the highest-earning female athlete with $30.4 million, but she missed out on the main list by about $7 million compared to Minnesota Vikings quarterback Daniel Jones, who earned $37.5 million.

It’s a wild world out there in sports where millions change hands on and off the field, court, and ring. With such huge sums in the game, the earnings race is more competitive than ever. Whether you’re a die-hard fan of soccer, basketball, or boxing, these figures remind us just how global and glamorous the world of sports has become.

List of 100 highest-paid athletes as Ronaldo ranked #1

Rank	Athlete	Sport	Team	Nationality	Salary/ Winnings	Endorsements	Total
1	Cristiano Ronaldo	Football	Al-Nassr	Portugal	$215M	$45M	$260M
2	Stephen Curry	Basketball	Golden State Warriors	USA	$53.8M	$100M	$153.8M
3	Tyson Fury	Boxing		USA	$140M	$7M	$147M
4	Lionel Messi	Football	Inter Miami	Argentina	$60M	$75M	$135M
5	Lebron James	Basketball	L.A Lakers	USA	$48.2M	$85M	$133.2M
6	Neymar	Football	Santons	Brazil	$108M	$25M	$133M
7	Oleksandr Usyk	Boxing		Ukraine	$120M	$2M	$122M
8	Karim Benzema	Football	Al-Ittihad	France	$108M	$8M	$116M
9	Kylian Mbappe	Football	Real Madrid	France	$85M	$25M	$110M
10	Jon Rahm	Golf		Spain	$85.8M	$20M	$105.8M