For the second year in a row, Cristiano Ronaldo, 39, is on top of the list of the highest-paid athletes compiled by Forbes, a US-based business magazine. The Portugal striker earned $260m in the past 12 months, up from $136m last year. Ronaldo’s great rival Lionel Messi has fallen a place to third behind Rahm, the Spanish golfer, who has jumped up to second ($218m). According to Forbes, the world’s 10 highest-paid athletes collectively earned $1.38 bn before taxes and agents’ fees over the past 12 months, which is the highest total ever. Meanwhile, Ronaldo scored twice in Al-Nassr’s 4-2 win against Al-Ittihad to reach a record 35 goals in the Saudi league, breaking Abderrazak Hamdallah’s mark of 34 set in the 2018-19 season. That puts Ronaldo on a record 765 goals in a 22-year career which has also included spells with Sporting Lisbon, Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus. He also holds the men’s record for international goals, with 128 from 206 appearances for Portugal. World’s top 10 highest paid athletes 2024:
1. Cristiano Ronaldo, football: $260m (£205m)
2. Jon Rahm, golf: $218m (£172m)
3. Lionel Messi, football: $135m (£107m)
4. LeBron James, basketball: $128.2m (£101m)
5. Giannis Antetokounmpo, basketball: $111m (£88m)
6. Kylian Mbappe, football: $110m (£87m)
7. Neymar, football: $108m (£85m)
8. Karim Benzema, football: $106m (£84m)
9. Stephen Curry, basketball: $102m (£80m)
10. Lamar Jackson, American football: $100.5m (£79m)
Source: BBC Sport
