Cristiano Ronaldo Joins Taylor Swift on Forbes' 2016 Highest-Paid Celebrity List

Real Madrid and Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo is reportedly the joint-fourth highest-paid celebrity in the world, only trailing musician Taylor Swift, boyband One Direction and author James Patterson in terms of earnings.

That’s according to Forbes (h/t Matthew Judge of Goal), who noted that the 31-year-old earns an estimated $88 million annually. In the sporting stratosphere, that puts him ahead of Barcelona forward Lionel Messi ($81.5 million) and Cleveland Cavaliers talisman LeBron James ($77 million), who are second and third, respectively, in the rankings from the sporting world.

Here is a look at the top 10 names on the list and their estimated earnings, per Forbes:

Position	Celebrity	Earnings
1.	Taylor Swift	$170 million
2.	One Direction	$110 million
3.	James Patterson	$95 million
=4.	Cristiano Ronaldo	$88 million
=4.	Dr. Phil McGraw	$88 million
6.	Kevin Hart	$87.5 million
7.	Howard Stern	$85 million
8.	Lionel Messi	$81.5 million
9.	Adele	$80.5 million
10.	Rush Limbaugh	$79 million

Judge provided further details of Ronaldo's income, including some of his many sponsorship deals:

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According to the data, Ronaldo, 31, earns $55m in wages while the rest comes from his several lucrative sponsorship deals with global brands such as Nike, Tag Heuer, Sacoor Brothers suits and Monster headphones.

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It’s little surprise to see the Portuguese so high in the standings as he continues to excel on the field. This year, in particular, has been one to remember for Ronaldo.

Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

In May, he netted the winning penalty as Real beat local rivals Atletico Madrid in the final of the UEFA Champions League. That was followed by Portugal’s success in the UEFA European Championship, as Ronaldo lifted the trophy after the team’s triumph over host nation France in the final.