US$275m: Who is the highest paid athlete in the world?

Basketballers, American footballers and soccer players have dominated the top 50 list of the world's highest-paid athletes over the past year, according to the latest analysis by Forbes.

Released last week, Forbes' 2025 World's Highest-Paid Athletes List reveals that the 50 top-earning sportspeople raked in an estimated US$4.23 billion (roughly A$6.6 billion) in the 12 months to the start of May.

That's a $400 million increase on the combined figure of $3.88 billion recorded the year before.

Compiled each year, the analysis takes into account both on-field (e.g. salaries) and off-field (e.g. sponsorships) earnings which Forbes compiles with the help of industry insiders and public databases.

So who pulled in the largest pay packet? Unsurprisingly, the list is full of some of the most famous sports stars in the world, but ultimately, there was one athlete who stood out.

Ronaldo soars above the pack 

With five Ballon d'Ors, a European Championship and countless other trophies and records under his belt, Cristiano Ronaldo's name is a relatively frequent addition at the top of football and sporting lists.

And for the third year running the Portuguese footballer has come out on top of Forbes' rankings as the world's highest paid athlete in 2025.

Ronaldo is estimated to have earned US$275 million over the past 12 months, thanks in large part to a bumper contract with his current club Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League.

To put Ronaldo's earnings in context, the figure is the equivalent of A$429 million (based on today's exchange rate), which is more than 4000 times the average annual earnings in Australia.

GOATs and greats earn big

While there's still an argument to be made that many athletes reach their sporting peak in their mid-to-late twenties, that doesn't necessarily have to be the case when it comes to earning power.

In fact, seven of the top 10 highest earners on Forbes' list are over the age of 35. Although, it does help that some are widely considered as GOATs (Greatest of All Time) in their respective sports.

That includes the likes of basketball superstars Steph Curry (ranked second) and LeBron James (ranked sixth), as well as Ronaldo's long-time footballing rival Lionel Messi (ranked fifth).

At 49, Tiger Woods is the oldest athlete to feature in the top 50, bringing in US$55.4 million in earnings (largely made off the golf course) over the last year.

Meanwhile, 23-year-old Anthony Edwards is the youngest athlete on the list, with the Minnesota Timberwolves' shooting guard having reportedly earned a tidy US$62.1 million over the past 12 months.

Female athletes miss the cut 

While there were no shortage of big names on this year's list, there were some notable absences - perhaps the most glaring being the lack of women among the world's 50 highest-paid athletes.

This is the second year in a row in which no female athlete has made it onto Forbes' rankings, with the most recent entrant being rich-list regular Serena Williams back in 2023.

Forbes notes that fellow American tennis star Coco Gauff was the closest to cracking the top 50 this year though, with estimated earnings of $34.4 million over the last year.

There were also no Australians among the highest earners - though that is less of a surprise.

In fact, golfer Jason Day was the last Aussie to make an appearance back in 2017 when he came in 69th out of 100 in a more expansive version of Forbes' rankings.

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