Ronaldo tops in sport rich list, earning staggering Ksh 9.6b this year

Christiano Ronaldo [Photo: Courtesy]

Christiano Ronaldo leads the pack as the world’s highest-paid athlete- According to The Sun.

Forbes released their annual ranking of the world’s 100 best-paid sports personalities and Ronaldo tops the bill with staggering earnings of £71.8million.

It is the second consecutive year that the Real Madrid star has finished top of the pile.

Basketball star LeBron James who pocketed £66.6m in 2017 comes in second; whilst Ronaldo’s fierce rival Lionel Messi took home £61.8m.

Ronaldo, 32, received a £44.8m salary from his club Real Madrid whilst £27m came from endorsements.

Before Ronaldo topped the table, the best-paid athlete was either Tiger Woods or Floyd Mayweather for a staggering 15 years in a row.

Woods was ranked No.17 in the list this year despite his troubles on and off the golf course whilst Mayweather didn’t make the top 100 having failed to have a fight last year.

1. Cristiano Ronaldo (football) – £71.8m

2. LeBron James (basketball) – £66.6m

3. Lionel Messi (football) – £61.8m

4. Roger Federer (tennis) – £49.4m

5. Kevin Durant (basketball) – £46.8m

6. Rory McIlroy (golf) – £38.6m

6. Andrew Luck (American football) – £38.6m

8. Stephen Curry (basketball) – £36.5m

9. James Harden (basketball) – £36m

10. Lewis Hamilton (F1) – £35.5m