Forbes 2026 Highest-Paid Athletes List Released: Ronaldo No. 1 With $300 Million

Cristiano Ronaldo earned an estimated $300 million from May 1, 2025 to May 1, 2026, topping the Forbes list of the world’s ten highest-paid athletes published May 22, 2026 and updated May 27, 2026. The 41-year-old Portuguese forward collected $235 million on the field from his contract with Al-Nassr and $65 million off the field.

’s 2015 mark for the largest nominal earnings recorded by Forbes since the ranking began in 1990.

Ronaldo’s earnings rose $25 million from the previous year. He signed a new two-year contract with Al-Nassr in June 2025 and acquired a 25 percent stake in Spanish second-division club UD Almería in February 2026. The club’s ownership group is led by the Saudi Media Company.

Ronaldo has more than one billion social media followers and sponsors including Binance, Nike and Perplexity. 5 million in its health-tech subsidiary HBL Pro2col Software LLC; the company’s shares rose 18 percent the next day. Canelo Álvarez ranked second with $170 million, including $160 million on the field.

The 35-year-old Mexican defeated William Scull by unanimous decision in Riyadh in May 2025, then lost to Terence Crawford in Las Vegas four months later, dropping his record to 63-3-2. The Álvarez-Crawford bout drew a Nevada-record announced attendance of 70,482 and more than 41 million Netflix viewers, peaking at more than 24 million concurrent streams.

Álvarez maintains a production deal with Box to Box Films.

Lionel Messi placed third at $140 million, split evenly between on-field and off-field income. The 38-year-old Argentine reached 100 combined goals and assists in his 64th regular-season MLS match, 31 games faster than any player in league history. 3 million in guaranteed compensation this season, exceeding the entire payroll of 28 other MLS teams.

Messi signed a contract extension with Inter Miami through the 2028 season in October and purchased Spanish fifth-division club Cornellà plus a shuttered Barcelona building for about $13 million. The 41-year-old has played 1,622 regular-season NBA games and is a partner in Fenway Sports Group, owner of the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool FC.

1 billion and hosts the podcast Mind The Game with Steve Nash, which secured a multiyear distribution deal across Amazon properties last year. 6 million to finish fifth, with $125 million off the field. The 31-year-old Japanese player signed a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers in December 2023 that defers most payments until 2034.

He collected $40,000 from the 2025 MLB All-Star Game and about $485,000 in postseason bonuses. Ohtani maintains more than 20 sponsors and has worn MLB’s most popular jersey for three straight seasons. 7 million.

6 million in the 2026-27 NBA season. Curry split with Under Armour in November 2025, released the book Shot Ready in September 2025, and co-directed the documentary The Baddest Speechwriter of All, which won the Sundance Film Festival’s Short Film Grand Jury Prize in January 2026.

Jon Rahm ranked seventh with $107 million after receiving an $18 million bonus for winning the LIV Golf 2025 individual championship.

The 31-year-old Spaniard has several years remaining on his LIV contract. Karim Benzema finished eighth at $104 million after transferring from Al-Ittihad to Al-Hilal in the winter of 2025-2026 following a contract dispute. The 38-year-old Frenchman scored a hat trick in his Al-Hilal debut in February 2026; Al-Hilal later won the King’s Cup.

8 million for ninth place, crossing $1 billion in career earnings while still active, the eighth athlete to reach the mark unadjusted for inflation. The 37-year-old was traded to the Houston Rockets in July 2025 and signed a two-year, $90 million extension in October 2025. Lewis Hamilton rounded out the top ten with $100 million.

The 41-year-old Briton finished sixth in the 2025 Formula 1 standings in his first season with Ferrari. The ten athletes earned $902 million on the field, down 2 percent from 2025, and $513 million off the field, exceeding the prior high of $512 million set in 2021. Their average age is 37, the oldest in the ranking’s 36-year history.

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund said in April 2026 that it would cease funding LIV Golf beyond this season.