Cristiano Ronaldo has retained his place as the world's highest earning athlete, according to sports finance experts Sportico.
The Al Nassr forward turned 40 last week and chose the occasion to state his claim to be the greatest footballer of all time.
In an interview with Spanish television channel La Sexta, Ronaldo proclaimed himself “the greatest scorer in history” and that he had “never seen anyone better than me”.
Ronaldo's self-confidence has never needed much of a lift, but perhaps earning $260 million in 2024 had something to do with it. That is how much the Portugal star took home thanks to his enormous $215m Al Nassr salary and a further $45m in endorsements.
According to Sportico, Ronaldo has earned more than $100m for eight consecutive years, while 2024 marked his second straight year in the $200m-plus bracket.
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.
Working with brands such as Nike, Herbalife, Altice and Binance, Ronaldo also rakes in millions in sponsorship cash, with brands exploiting his status as the world's most followed person on social media – his follower count exceeded one billion last year, led by 649m on Instagram.
Saudi Arabia's drive into sport is evident throughout the top 10 earners, with six of them benefiting from Saudi pay checks in 2024.
NBA star Steph Curry ($153.8m), in second place, remains the top earner in the American market, with Lionel Messi ($135m) in fourth and LeBron James ($133.2m) fifth.
Former heavyweight boxing champion Tyson Fury ($147m) is third on the list, while Oleksandr Usyk – the man who beat him twice in Riyadh-hosted prizefights last year – is seventh ($122m).
Brazil star Neymar, whose disastrous spell in Saudi football with Al Hilal recently ended with a free transfer back to Santos, is in sixth place with his $108m salary supplemented by $25m of sponsorship revenue.
Al Ittihad striker Karim Benzema ($116m) is eighth, with his former France international teammate Kylian Mbappe in ninth ($116m). Mbappe, 26, is the youngest member of the top 10, and also the only athlete based in Europe. His haul was bolstered significantly by a free transfer from PSG to Real Madrid last summer.
The top 10 is rounded off by golfer Jon Rahm who made a money-spinning switch to Saudi Arabia's LIV golf in 2024.
There are no women in the top 100. NFL player Daniel Jones of the Minnesota Vikings earned $37.5m to take the final spot on the list, while the highest paid female athlete of last year was US tennis star Coco Gauff, who banked $30.4m.
Gauff's earnings were boosted when she picked up a record prize pot at the WTA Finals, hosted in Riyadh for the first time in 2024.
The steady flow of Saudi money can be seen throughout Sportico's top 100. Other footballers on the list from the Saudi Pro League include Al Ahli's Riyad Mahrez ($52m) and Al Nassr's Sadio Mane ($45.5m).
Messi might have turned down a huge offer from the kingdom to join Inter Miami, but he still pockets $25m from a partnership with Saudi Arabia's tourism authority.
The NBA (36 players) and NFL (22 players) make up nearly 60 per cent of the top 100, according to Sportico, with both leagues having raised their salary caps last year.
The breakdown by sport for other athletes in the top 100 was football (12), baseball (11), golf (nine), boxing (six), tennis (two) and Formula One (two). The US dominates the top 100 with 64 athletes – the UK is next with five athletes, followed by Japan and France with three each.
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
OPINIONS ON PALESTINE & ISRAEL
Tonight's Chat on The National
Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.
Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster who has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others.
Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.
Facebook | Our website | Instagram
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
TO A LAND UNKNOWN
Director: Mahdi Fleifel
Starring: Mahmoud Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Mohammad Alsurafa
Rating: 4.5/5
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%201.8-litre%204-cyl%20turbo%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E190hp%20at%205%2C200rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20320Nm%20from%201%2C800-5%2C000rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeven-speed%20dual-clutch%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFuel%20consumption%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%206.7L%2F100km%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh111%2C195%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENow%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
More from Aya Iskandarani
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
THE DETAILS
Solo: A Star Wars Story
Dir: Ron Howard
Starring: Alden Ehrenreich, Emilia Clarke, Woody Harrelson
3/5
