The 10 highest-paid athletes in 2026: Cristiano Ronaldo above LeBron James & Lionel Messi… | OneFootball

Stars from football, basketball, boxing and baseball are among the highest-paid athletes in the world, but who comes out on top?

Of the 10 highest-paid athletes, the majority are based in the United States, although there are some big outliers.

Using figures provided by Sportico, here are the 10 highest-paid athletes in the world, including their salaries and estimated endorsements.

1. Cristiano Ronaldo – $260million per year

Not only is Ronaldo top of this list, but he’s the number one by a country mile.

Since moving to Saudi Arabia and joining Al-Nassr, the 41-year-old has been earning a yearly salary of $200million alongside his endorsements, which take him to $260million overall.

Ronaldo is arguably the most famous person on planet earth, so it stands to reason that he’s the highest-paid athlete, despite no longer being in his prime.

While CR7 is taking home a mouth-watering sum, he’s cut a frustrated figure in Saudi Arabia of late and has been on protest, having missed Al-Nassr’s last two matches.

2. Canelo Alvarez – $137million per year

Being a boxer, Alvarez’s yearly earnings will fluctuate more than the others on this list, depending on how many times he fights per year.

As per Sportico, his last known yearly income was $137million, which is good enough to place him second on this list.

Amazingly, Jake Paul is now the fourth-highest-paid boxer in the world, only behind Alvarez, Terence Crawford and Naoya Inoue.

3. Lionel Messi – $130million per year

In terms of his base salary at Inter Miami, Messi is one of the lowest earners on this list, but his lucrative endorsements secure him a spot in the top three.

Messi famously rejected a $1.2billion offer to move to Saudi Arabia in 2023, in favour of joining Inter Miami instead.

Along with his base salary in MLS, the 38-year-old also receives revenue sharing from Adidas and Apple as part of his contract, taking his yearly endorsements to an estimated $70million.

4. Juan Soto – $129.2million per year

Soto is the highest-paid baseball player in the world, taking home a whopping $129.2million per year.

Of those earnings, the vast majority comes from his salary with the New York Mets as he’s only estimated to make around $7million in endorsements.

5. LeBron James – $128.7million per year

In terms of salary only, LeBron is no longer the highest-paid basketball player in the world, but his lucrative endorsements of $80million per year ensure that he still earns more than Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant.

6. Karim Benzema – $115million per year

Benzema left Europe in 2023 to move to Saudi Arabia and secured a highly lucratve deal with Al-Ittihad.

He’s since moved to fellow Saudi club Al-Hilal and is still one of the highest-paid footballers in the world today.

7. Stephen Curry – $105.4million per year

In terms of salary, Curry currently earns slightly more than LeBron, but his endorsements aren’t quite as lucrative.

Of his $105.4million eanrings, $55.4million comes from his salary from the Golden State Warriors, while the other $50million comes from various endorsements.

8. Shohei Ohtani – $102.5million per year

Considered among the greatest baseball players of all time, Ohtani’s yearly earnings of $102.5million places him eigth on this list.

As per the stats of Sportico, the vast majority of his earnings come via endorsements and make him one of the highest-paid players in his sport.

9. Kevin Durant – $100.8million per year

Making $100.8million per year, Durant secures his spot in the top 10 as the third basketball player on the list.

His earnings from salary and endorsements are practically even, with him making around $50million per year via each revenue stream.

10. Jon Rahm – $100.7million per year

Rahm’s earnings will fluctuate on a yearly basis based on performance, but he secures a spot in the top 10 based on Sportico’s latest numbers.

Earning $100.7million from golf, he’s slightly ahead of the likes of Lewis Hamilton, Kylian Mbappe, Rory McIlroy and Max Verstappen, who are just outside the top 10.