Top 20 Highest-Paid Athletes in 2025
Top 20 Highest-Paid Athletes in 2025Cristiano Ronaldo has once again cemented his status as the financial king of sport, topping the list of the 20 highest-paid athletes in 2025 with an estimated $275 million in total earnings. The football legend’s massive salary at Al-Nassr, combined with his unrivaled endorsement deals, makes him the undisputed number one.But who else made the cut? From NBA superstars and football icons to boxers and golfers, the diversity in this year’s rankings is as exciting as ever.Rank Athlete Sport Earnings1 Cristiano Ronaldo Football $275 million2 Stephen Curry Basketball $156 million3 Tyson Fury Boxing $146 million4 Dak Prescott American Football $137 million5 Lionel Messi Football $135 million6 LeBron James Basketball $133.8 million7 Juan Soto Baseball $114 million8 Karim Benzema Football $104 million9 Shohei Ohtani Baseball $102.5 million10 Kevin Durant Basketball $101.4 million11 Oleksandr Usyk Boxing $101 million12 Lamar Jackson American Football $100.5 million13 Joe Burrow American Football $100 million14 Scottie Scheffler Golf $92.5 million15 Canelo Álvarez Boxing $90.1 million16 Kylian Mbappé Football $90 million17 Rory McIlroy Golf $87.9 million18 Patrick Mahomes American Football $84.4 million19 Anthony Joshua Boxing $83 million20 Max Verstappen Auto Racing (F1) $81 millionA Record-Breaking YearThis marks the first time all top 10 athletes each earned more than $100 million in a single year. Collectively, the top 20 athletes brought in over $2 billion — a staggering reflection of modern sports’ global reach and commercial power.Expect these numbers to keep rising as media rights, Saudi investments, and digital sponsorships continue to pour into elite sports.
