It’s not only the fame which is involved in sports but also a lot of money. Sportstars earn a loads off of money not only by participating or winning their respective sporting event but also through advertisements, public appearances etc. Recently, Forbes has come out with the list of highest paid athletes in the year 2012 — the Top 10 are…
1. Floyd Mayweather
Floyd Mayweather’s total earnings in last one year are approximately $85 million. The interesting thing to note here is that even though he was not involved in any endorsement deals during the previous year, yet his income exceeded the rest in this list.
2. Manny Pacquaio
He is another boxing champ who amassed huge wealth in the last one year. Manny, who is aged just 33, made approximately $56 million in last year with $6 million coming from endorsement deals with Nike, Monster Energy, HP and Hennessy.
3. Tiger Woods
Tiger was the number one paid athlete during the 2010 and 2011. However, drop in his form and private scandals eroded Tiger’s market value, pushing him to number three in this list. This golfer made approximately $59.5 million with majority of the money coming from endorsement deals. Also, his net worth is estimated around more than $ 500 million.
4. LeBron James
Finally, we have a basketball player on the list. LeBron is a rising star in the world of basketball. He amassed around $53 million during the last year with more than $40 coming out from endorsement of popular brands like Nike , Coco Cola, McDonald’s and many others.
5. Roger Federer
Roger is one of the greatest athletes the world has ever seen. His recent win at the Wimbledon has put him in league with the best tennis players of all times. Roger earned around $53 million during the previous year with $45 million out of it coming from branding of Rolex, Nike, Credit Suisse and Wilson etc.
6. Kobe Bryant
Kobe is a superb basketball player and his recent performance speaks a lot about him. Kobe earned more than $52 million during last year with around $32 million coming from endorsements of popular brands.
7. Phil Mickelson
This avid golfer is brand ambassador of many brands including Barclay’s, Exxon, Pfizer, Callaway etc. He made around $43 million from endorsement deals with his total earnings being $47.8 million during last year.
8. David Beckham
Beckham is one of the most recognized faces in the world of sports. Considered as one of the best looking athletes in the world, David earned around $46 million over the last year with around $37 million coming from endorsement deals. His net worth is estimated at over $260 million.
9. Cristiano Ronaldo
This 27 year old portugese footballer is not only popular in his home country but throughout the world. Endorsement deals with Nike, Konami, Castrol as well as many other fetched him around $22 million last year with his total earnings over the last year being $42.5 million.
10. Peyton Manning
Manning is the only NFL player who features on this list. Peyton earned $ 42.4 million over the last year with majority of this earning coming from salary or winning and approximately $10 million coming from endorsement deals of Papa John’s, Sony, Gatorade, Reebok etc.
