Cristiano Ronaldo Tops Forbes List of Highest-Paid Athletes for Sixth Time

Cristiano Ronaldo earned an estimated $300 million over the past 12 months, placing him first on Forbes' list of the world's 50 highest-paid athletes. The combined earnings of the 50 athletes totaled $4.1 billion before taxes and agent fees. That figure is down slightly from the $4.2 billion recorded in 2025.

Three athletes set new sport-specific earnings records. Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari became the first Formula 1 driver to reach $100 million. Juan Soto had taken baseball's top spot in 2025, but Shohei Ohtani reclaimed it with $127.6 million. Ronaldo's $300 million matched the single-year high previously set by Floyd Mayweather Jr.

in 2015. The average age of athletes on the list fell to 30. Twenty athletes did not appear on the 2025 ranking, and 14 were first-time entrants. Tiger Woods, who earned roughly $46 million, missed the top 50 for the first time in 30 years.

On-field earnings from salaries, bonuses, and prize money reached $3 billion across the list. Ronaldo received an estimated $235 million from his contract with Al-Nassr. Boxer Canelo Álvarez earned $160 million from two fights. Off-field earnings for the group totaled a record $1.1 billion.

Shohei Ohtani collected an estimated $125 million from endorsements and other business activities, the highest off-field total among active athletes except for Conor McGregor's 2021 whiskey-brand sale. The cutoff to reach the top 50 stood at $54.6 million, set by tennis player Jannik Sinner.

Eight sports are represented, with basketball accounting for 20 athletes, the NFL nine, and soccer seven.