Cristiano Ronaldo tops Forbes sport rich list after raking in £206MILLION

Cristiano Ronaldo has again been named the world’s highest-paid athlete as he tops Forbes’ rich list. 

The 40-year-old Portuguese striker earned an estimated £206.6million ($275m) last year, an increase of £11.2m from 2023.

Ronaldo has now topped the list for a third consecutive year and a fifth time during his glittering career.

The Portuguese star has reportedly been paid a staggering £177million-a-year salary by his Saudi club Al Nassr since joining  Manchester United in December 2022.

He also has other streams of income through various sponorships and boasts an enormous social media following of 939m.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner’s salary has only ever been dwarfed by one athlete, Floyd Mayweather.

The former world champion boxer earned an astonishing $300m (then £194m) in 2015 and $275m in 2018 (then £205m).

Ronaldo pipped NBA legend Steph Curry, who was ranked second with a £117m ($156m) salary in a season that saw him become the first ever player to hit 4,000 three-pointers.

British boxer Tyson Fury came in third on the rich list, with an estimated salary of £109m ($146m) after two fights with Ukraine’s Oleksandr Usyk in Riyadh.

Ronaldo’s long-time rival Lionel Messi is ranked at fifth, dropping down from third last year.

The Inter Miami forward took home £101.4m ($135m) last year, with an estimated £56.2m ($75m) in off-field earnings.

The Argentine is paid handsomely for a sponsorship deal to promote Saudi Arabia as a tourist destination. 

While Karim Benzema, who plays for Saudi Champions Al-Ittihad, was named as the eight highest paid athlete, raking in £78.2m ($104m).

Basketball stars LeBron James and Kevin Durant make up the rest of list, alongside  Dallas Cowboy’s quarterback Dak Prescott, and baseballer players Juan Soto and Shohei Ohtani. 

Meanwhile, Erling Haaland, the Premier League’s highest-earning player, ranks in 34th.

The Norwegian took home £46.5m ($62m) last year, including £36m ($48m) from his Manchester City earnings. 

TOP 10 HIGHEST-PAID ATHLETES ACCORDING TO FORBES 

1. Cristiano Ronaldo – £206.6m ($275m)

2. Stephen Curry – £117.1m ($156m)

3. Tyson Fury – £109.5m ($146m)

4. Dak Prescott £102.8m ($137m)

5. Lionel Messi £101.3m ($135m)

6. LeBron James £100.4m ($133.8m)

7. Juan Soto £85.5m ($114m)

8. Karim Benzema £78m ($104m)

9. Shohei Ohtani £76.9m ($102.5m) 

10. Kevin Durant £76.1m ($101.4m)