World’s Highest Paid Athlete: Roger Federer Beats Messi And Ronaldo

Roger Federer has been named highest-paid athlete in the world for the first time, pipping Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi to top spot.

The world No. 4 from Switzerland has become the first tennis player to top the list assembled by Forbes since its inception in 1990.

He moved from fifth in the 2019 rankings to No. 1 by earning a whopping $106.3million (£86m) in the last 12 months.

Fellow tennis player Naomi Osaka, who is 29th on the list, had already been confirmed as the highest paid female athlete.

Juventus star Ronaldo was narrowly behind Federer, earning $105m in the last year, with Barcelona’s Messi ($104m) dropping from top spot in 2019 to No. 3.

Forbes athletes rich list top 10

1. Federer (tennis) – $106.3m
2. Ronaldo (football) – $105m
3. Messi (football) – $104m
4. Neymar (football) – $95.5m
5. James (basketball) – $88.2m
6. Curry (basketball) – $74.4m
7. Durant (basketball) – $63.9m
8. Woods (golf) – $62.3m
9. Cousins (American football) – $60.5m
10. Wentz (American football) – $59.1m

Federer’s winnings were only $6.3m but his endorsements totalled a ridiculous $100m – more than Messi and Ronaldo combined.
Boxing’s Tyson Fury is the highest-paid British athlete, at No. 11 on the list ($57m).

His ‘Big Three’ rivals Novak Djokovic, the world No. 1 from Serbia, and Rafael Nadal, the world No. 2 from Spain, both made the top-30, with Djokovic at No. 23 and Nadal at No. 27.