McGregor Beats Messi, Ronaldo to Become World’s Richest Athlete

MMA superstar Conor McGregor has edged out Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi to top Forbes’ list of the world’s highest paid athletes.

During the 12-month period up to May 1 this year, the Irishman is said to have earned a whopping $180million, though $150m of that came from the sale of a majority stake in his whiskey brand.

Barcelona and Argentina forward Messi was second on the list and set a record as the highest-earning soccer player after bringing home $130 million while Portugal and Juventus forward Ronaldo earned $120 million to sit third among the top 10 highest-paid athletes.

NFL quarterback Dak Prescott ($107.5 million) of the Dallas Cowboys and four-times NBA champion LeBron James ($96.5 million) rounded out the top five.

Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton was the only Brit to make the top 10 list, coming in eighth, while no female sports stars made the cut.

Forbes said its on-the-field earnings figures include all prize money, salaries and bonuses earned during the 12-month period while off-the-field earnings are an estimate of sponsorship deals, appearance fees and licensing income.

However, a research by JustWatch shows that after excluding money earned by endorsements, the athletes with the largest annual salaries in the world are all footballers - Lionel Messi, Neymar, and Cristiano Ronaldo. 10 NBA players made the list, with Steph Curry from the US on top. Interestingly, without endorsements, Conor McGregor is only the 23rd highest paid athlete.

JustWatch is an international streaming guide that helps over 20 million users per month across 84 countries to find something great to watch on Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+, etc

May 13, 2021