The Richest Players in the World
The Richest Players in the World
$130 MILLION LIONEL MESSI
Lionel Messi's $20 million annual partnership with Socios complements a portfolio that includes Adidas, Budweiser and PepsiCo. He also became Hard Rock International's first brand ambassador in a deal announced last June, helping Messi team up with Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo for the first time since 2013 to generate off-field revenue. Messi won the 2021 Ballon d'Or as the world's top male player but has struggled on the pitch more than lately, scoring just nine goals in 32 games for Paris Saint-Germain after failing in his last season for Barcelona in Scored 38 goals in 47 games. But while PSG were eliminated in the Champions League round of 16, the club won the French Ligue 1 title in Messi's debut season.
LeBron James $121.2M $
LeBron James Los Angeles Lakers haven't made the playoffs this season, but he's never been more dominant off the court. James proceeded in last years Space Jam A New Legacy and recently moved his talk show The Shop from HBO to YouTube. In October, he sold a large minority stake in SpringHill the production company behind both projects — for a value of about $725 million, taking his net worth to $850 million, according to Forbes estimates. After James announced an endorsement deal with Crypto.com in January, he appeared in a Super Bowl commercial alongside a computer-generated version of his younger self. He also recently invested in home gym Tonal as a sports tech startup developing virtual reality training products.
$115 MILLION CRISTIANO RONALDO