The American financial and economic Forbes, one of the most authoritative and well-known economic publications in the world, has ranked the 10 highest paid athletes in 2021, which for the first time topped the former UFC champion Conor McGregor.
According to the publication, over the past 12 months (from May 1, 2020 to May 1, 2021), the MMA superstar has earned a total of $ 180 million. Of these, the Irishman received 22 million directly for performances in the octagon, while most of the amount came from the sale of a controlling stake in his own whiskey brand Proper No. Twelve for $ 150 million.
The second line of the rating is occupied by the striker of the Barcelona football club Lionel Messi (130 million dollars), and the footballer of Juventus Turin and the Portuguese national team Cristiano Ronaldo (120 million dollars) closes the top three.
The entire rating is as follows:
- Conor McGregor (MMA, UFC) – $ 180 million ($ 22 million + $ 158 million);
- Lionel Messi (football, Barcelona) – $ 130 million ($ 97 million + $ 33 million);
- Cristiano Ronaldo (football, Juventus) – $ 120 million ($ 70 million + $ 50 million);
- Duck Prescott (American football, Dallas Cowboys) – $ 107.5 million ($ 97.5 million + $ 10 million);
- LeBron James (basketball, Los Angeles Lakers) – $ 96.5 million ($ 31.5 million + $ 65 million);
- Neymar (football, PSG) – $ 95 million ($ 76 million + $ 19 million);
- Roger Federer (tennis) – $ 90 million ($ 0 million + $ 90 million);
- Lewis Hamilton (race car driver, Formula 1, Mercedes) – $ 82 million ($ 70 million + $ 12 million);
- Tom Brady (American football, Tampa Bay Buccaneers) – $ 76 million ($ 45 million + $ 31 million);
- Kevin Durant (basketball, Brooklyn Nets) – $ 75 million ($ 31 million + $ 44 million).
