Cristiano Ronaldo Tops 2024 Highest-Paid Athlete List

Cristiano Ronaldo has retained his status as the world’s best earning athlete, according to sports finance experts Sportico. Last Thursday, the Al Nassr attacker turned 40 and claimed to be the greatest footballer ever.

Ronaldo told Spanish television channel La Sexta that he was “the greatest scorer in history” and had “never seen anyone better than me”.

Ronaldo’s self-confidence has never required much of a raise, but perhaps earning $260 million in 2024 had something to do with it. This is how much the Portugal star made from his $215m Al Nassr contract and $45m in endorsements.

Ronaldo has earned over $100m for eight years and $200m or more for two. His incredibly lucrative switch to the kingdom has pushed his career earnings to more than $1.8 billion since his professional debut for Sporting Lisbon in 2002.

Ronaldo earns millions in sponsorship money from Nike, Herbalife, Altice, and Binance, taking advantage of his status as the world’s most followed person on social media (649m on Instagram last year).