Forbes Magazine has come out with its list of the top 10 highest paid athletes in the world, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady makes the list at number nine, with $76 million earned in the year ending May 2021.
MMA fighter Conor McGregor tops this year's list, with earnings of $180 million, if only due largely in part to the sale of his majority stake in whiskey brand Proper No. Twelve to Proximo Spirits for $150 million.
Three other athletes topped the $100 million mark, the first time four athletes earned more than $100 million in a single year.
Brady isn't the only quarterback on this list, as the Dallas Cowboys' Dak Prescott is one of those $100 million men, ranking fourth with $107.5 million earned.
The list below is comprised of McGregor, two NFL players (the aforementioned Brady and Prescott), three soccer players, two NBA players, a Formula 1 driver, and a tennis player:
- Conor McGregor - $180 million
- Lionel Messi - $130 million
- Cristiano Ronaldo - $120 million
- Dak Prescott - $107.5 million
- LeBron James - $96.5 million
- Neymar - $95 million
- Roger Federer - $90 million
- Lewis Hamilton - $82 million
- Tom Brady - $76 million
- Kevin Durant - $75 million
Methodology, from Forbes Magazine:
"Forbes’ on-the-field earnings figures include all prize money, salaries and bonuses earned between May 1, 2020, and May 1, 2021. In cases where players continue to be paid beyond May for a regular season that is typically concluded by then, as in the NBA and European soccer, we assign the full season of salary. We ignored salary and bonuses that NBA players earned for playing in the league’s bubble last summer; the figures in this year’s list reflect only the 2020-21 NBA season, with a 20% cut from base salaries because of the league’s escrow adjustment.
"Off-the-field earnings figures are an estimate of sponsorship deals, appearance fees and licensing income for the 12 months through May 1, plus cash returns from any businesses operated by the athlete, based on conversations with industry insiders. We do not deduct for taxes or agents’ fees, and we do not include investment income. Our list includes athletes active at any point during our time frame."
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