Professional athletes are just as influential as most celebrities. However, global influence and popularity are not only the things that pro athletes have in common with celebrities. It’s also one of the reasons why most people pursue pro sports as well as passion and love.
Pro-athletes even achieve more influence than A-list movie stars. This is especially true when it comes to players reaching multi-million dollar deals in the NFL or NBA. Star players in team sports are also paid a tiny bit more than benched players; mainly because they’d be working more than their less well-known counterparts.
But how much do these star players make? According to Forbes, the average breaks down to about 6.8 million dollars per player in the NBA, while the average break down for NFL players reach about 3.3 million dollars per player. That may seem low for professional athletes in the sport, but 3.3 million dollars is still a lot. An NFL player with that average pay could buy about 30 luxury cars. If they purchase a sports car like Porsche, they could buy that number of cars and still afford a luxury Porsche service in any city. But who tops who in the list of the highest-paid athletes in 2020?
Lebron James
The LA Laker champion is considered to be one of the most popular athletes of all time and is considered as one of the most recognized faces of the NBA. For this, It’s natural to assume that he’s currently the highest-earning player of the sport. Apart from the hoop star’s multi-million dollar deal with the LA Lakers, he’s also bound to countless endorsements, his very own pizza chain, his shares with a health and wellness company; it’s no longer surprising to see him rank high on this list. His pay is said to be roughly around 88.2 million dollars.
Neymar
Neymar is considered to be one of the fresh faces of football and has huge engagements on social media with a flamboyant and showy style admired by many. The young football star is believed to earn 25 million dollars on endorsements alone, with 74.4 million dollars as his pay.
Lionel Messi
Messi is considered to be one of the most popular athletes of all time – you don’t have to be truly engaged in football, but the locals surely knew of him or at least have heard of it. The legendary football player with over 600 goals scored in his entire career is believed to have earned 32 million dollars in endorsements, and a pay of at least 104 million dollars.
Cristiano Ronaldo
Quite possibly one of the only athletes in the field that could rival Messi’spopularity, Ronaldo ranking high on this list definitely didn’t come off as a surprise. His skills and his personality has earned him a massive fan-base all over the world and has become a household name not only in football but in sports in general. The football legend is believed to earn over 45 million dollars in endorsements, and a general pay of 105 million dollars.
Roger Federer
The athlete to edge out football legends in terms of pay is another legendary athlete in a different field. For most tennis fans, Federer would definitely go down as one of the greatest to ever do it and is no doubt considered to be one of the most decorated athletes of all time. His skills and hard work definitely paid off – 106.3 million dollars to be exact.
