Ronaldo, Curry, Dak, LeBron, Messi Among Forbes' Top 10 Highest-Paid Athletes for 2025
Cristiano Ronaldo is still raking in the paper.
The Al-Nassr forward is the highest-paid athlete in 2025, according to Brett Knight of Forbes, bringing in $275 million between his on- and off-field earnings.
Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry ($156 million), boxer Tyson Fury ($146 million), Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott ($137 million), Miami FC superstar Lionel Messi ($135 million), Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James ($133.8 million), New York Mets slugger Juan Soto ($114 million), Al-Ittihad striker Karim Benzema ($104 million), Los Angeles Dodgers MVP Shohei Ohtani ($102.5 million) and Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant ($101.4 million) rounded out the top 10.
Knight noted that Forbes "tracked income earned between May 1, 2024, and May 1, 2025, based on conversations with dozens of industry insiders" and that on-field earnings "reflect prize money, salaries, bonuses and, in some situations with soccer players, club-based image rights agreements or playing wages subsidized by team or league sponsors"
Off-field figures, meanwhile, were tabulated based on an "estimate of sponsorship deals, appearance fees and memorabilia and licensing income for the 12 months leading to May 1, 2025, plus cash returns from any businesses in which the athlete has a significant interest."
Nobody made anywhere close to Ronaldo's $225 million in on-field earnings, while Curry and Ohtani each topped the list of off-field earners at $100 million.
One note on Ohtani is that $68 million in money he otherwise would have been owed this year has been deferred to 2035. So while the actual value of his salary this season is $70 million, he won't see most of that money for another 10 years. Of course, it's easy to defer that type of money into the future to help out your club when you are still raking in $100 million off the field.
Prescott is perhaps a surprise addition to this list, though that comes down to him signing a four-year, $240 million extension in September that included an $80 million signing bonus.
Easily the worst deal on the list comes at No. 15, with the Cleveland Browns forking out $90.8 million to Deshaun Watson in 2025. He's now played 19 games for the Browns in three seasons, throwing for 19 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, and his five-year, $230 million contract—which is fully guaranteed—is making a very strong case to be remembered as the worst contract in professional sports history.
As for the overall breakdown in the top 50, there are 16 NBA players, 13 NFL players (Dallas wideout CeeDee Lamb is the only non-quarterback of that group), eight soccer players, five golfers, three baseball players, three boxers and two auto racers. Turns out it pays to put a basketball through a hoop or spin a tight spiral.
