Where Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi rank compared to highest paid athletes in previous decade, including Floyd Mayweather and Lewis Hamilton

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Between 2010 and 2019, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi were the best players in the world and were clearly well rewarded for their efforts.

However, there was one man who pulled in more money than both footballers.

Floyd Mayweather topped the Forbes ranking, which totalled all earnings from the world’s biggest sports stars over the previous ten years and for a man who loves to earn cash, it’s no surprise to see him on top.


Floyd Mayweather aptly nicknamed himself ‘money’

‘Money’ made the most thanks to his mega fights with Manny Pacquiao (also included in the top ten) and Conor McGregor in 2015 and 2017 respectively, but Ronaldo and Messi are not too far.

Ronaldo vs Messi

10. Lewis Hamilton – $400m


Hamilton is most marketable athlete in F1 and his earnings show that

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9. Kevin Durant – $425m


Durant’s earnings have come on a lot in the past ten years as he has moved from Oklahoma City Thunder to Golden State Warriors and now the Brooklyn Nets

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8. Manny Pacquiao – $435m


Mayweather vs Pacquiao generated half a billion dollars when they finally met in the ring

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7. Phil Mickelson – $480m


In 2018, Mickelson defeated his rival Woods in an exhibition for $9m

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6. Tiger Woods – $615m


The biggest name in golf retained his big sponsorship deals

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5. Roger Federer – $640m


Federer has a $300m deal with Uniqlo that has kept his bank balance looking healthy

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4. LeBron James – $680m


LeBron’s endorsements are astronomical

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3. Lionel Messi – $750m


Messi has won more Ballon d’Or awards than any other player

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2. Cristiano Ronaldo – $800m


Ronaldo has huge endorsement deals and has continued to earn big since leaving Real Madrid for Juventus

AFP or licensors

1. Floyd Mayweather – $915m


Mayweather made millions from mega fights and just missed out on £1bn, according to Forbes

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Source: TalkSport.com Motorsport