Cristiano Ronaldo has become the world’s highest-paid athlete for the first time since 2017 following his move to Saudi Arabian side Al Nassr, according to Forbes magazine. The 38-year-old soccer superstar reportedly earned $136 million with his annual playing salary going up to an estimated $75 million after leaving Premier League side Manchester United and moved to Al-Nassr this year on a deal until 2025.
“After a disappointing year and a half with Manchester United, Cristiano Ronaldo jumped to Saudi Arabia’s Al Nassr on a huge new contract in January, nearly doubling his annual playing salary to an estimated $75 million,” Forbes wrote in an article. It is learnt that the list takes into account the earnings before taxes or agents’ fees between 1 May 2022 and 1 May 2023. Get the latest soccer predictions here!
This is the third time that the five-time Ballon D’or winner has topped Forbes’ richest athletes list. His overall earnings for 2023 are also the highest ever for any footballer, according to Forbes. He earned $46 million off-field, meaning engagements outside the sport, while he earned $90 million on-field. Most of his off-field earnings came from endorsements and commercials.
Ronaldo has over 850 million followers across multiple social media platforms, over 500 million of which are from Instagram alone, making the most-followed person on the platform. He also has his own CR7 label and is a lifelong Nike endorser in 2016, has been a partner since 2003. Recently, he joined cryptocurrency exchange Binance that has a huge chunk on his off-field earnings.
Ronaldo was closely followed by Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) duo Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe. Messi earned $130 million, while Mbappe has $120 million, making his debut in the list and becoming the youngest. Los Angeles Lakers player and NBA great LeBron James ($119.5 million) and Mexican boxer Canelo Alvarez ($110 million) rounded out the top five.
During the World Cup last year, Ronaldo’s former Premier League club announced the termination of his contract following his controversial tell-all interview where he revealed his frustrations at the club and slammed the owners and the manager, saying he has “no respect” for Ten Hag. “Cristiano Ronaldo is to leave Manchester United by mutual agreement, with immediate effect,” the club said in a statement.
The Portuguese star made his debut at Al-Nassr earlier this year in a friendly match against French champions Paris Saint-Germain. During his first league game, Ronaldo helped his Al-Nassr team on his debut to beat Al Ettifaq at the King Saud University Stadium. Ronaldo has netted 12 times in 12 league games since his move to the Middle East
