Cristiano Ronaldo Pips Lionel Messi, Notches World Record For Highest Annual Earnings at $136m

Cristiano Ronaldo has overtaken his arch-nemesis Lionel Messi to set yet another world record for the highest annual earnings by an athlete.

According to Forbes, Ronaldo finished top of the world’s highest-earning athletes’ list, as the Al Nassr forward raked in an eye-watering sum of $136m since joining the Saudi Pro League.

The 38-year-old has topped the Forbes’ lucrative list for the first time since 2017, and he also surpassed Lionel Messi who topped the list in 2022 with earnings of $130m throughout the year.

Ronaldo holds more than 10 Guinness World Records, including the latest feat.

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According to a report in Goal.com, Ronaldo’s income is split between his on-field and off-the-field exploits. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner raked in a sum of $46m with his on-field performances, while the most followed person on Instagram earned $90m through endorsements, social media and other sources.

When the Portugal international left Manchester United to join Al Nassr he doubled his salary however, despite this, his major source of income remains his endorsement deals with sponsors such as Nike and other driving factors such as the CR7 brand merchandise.

Messi meanwhile dropped down to second place in the list, with his estimated earning of $130 million, which are again distributed between the Argentine’s on-field exploits and side hustles.

Messi’s former teammate Kylian Mbappe rounds off the top three, the Frenchman’s bumper new PSG contract signed last year helped him boost his earnings to $100 million and he further raked in $20m from endorsements and other sources.

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Basketball legend LeBron James ranks in fourth place with estimated earnings in the region of $119m whereas, Boxer Canelo Alvarez finished in fifth place with a figure of $110.

Talking about Ronaldo, the star footballer has begun his pre-season with Al Nassr while Messi will look to pip CR7 in next year’s list after securing a massive payday following his move to Inter Miami.

The MLS-based club announced Messi’s signing on Sunday for a contract until 2025 which includes many lucrative additions such as money earned from shirt sales.