World's highest paid athletes 2022/23

Of the 10 highest paid athletes in the world in 2022/23, the top three spots were taken by soccer players, with Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi sitting in first and second place, respectively. Meanwhile, Basketball star LeBron James' on- and off-field earnings of nearly 120 million U.S. dollars put him in fourth place.

Messi vs. Ronaldo continues

Despite the ongoing debate among fans and in the media about who is the better soccer player between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, it is the former that led the way in terms of total earnings in 2022/23. As well as winning an incredible amount of trophies, Ronaldo is winning off the pitch, too, thanks to a lucrative sponsorship deal with Nike, and endorsements with DAZN, Electronic Arts, and Tag Heuer. In fact, the 90 million U.S. dollars Ronaldo earnt through endorsements was nearly double what the Portuguese star received through his on-field salary and winnings. On the other hand, seven-time Ballon d'Or winner Messi had an equal share of on- and -off field earnings, which totaled 130 million U.S. dollars. Ronaldo also had the edge over Messi on certain social media platforms, claiming the title of most followed athlete on Instagram. The Portuguese star has over 480 million followers on the social media site, while Lionel Messi has a "mere" 361.01 million.

Where are all the women?

One notable absence in the list of highest paid athletes is any female athletes. In fact, the highest paid female athletes took home a fraction of the earnings of their male counterparts. Tennis star Naomi Osaka topped the list of sportswomen, having taken home 1.1 million U.S. dollars in prize money and a further 50 million U.S. dollars in endorsements in 2022. Osaka consistently ranked in the top 10 of the WTA's ranking of female tennis players worldwide between 2018 and 2020, and her endorsements include companies such as Nike, Louis Vuitton, and Mastercard.