Messi tops Forbes' list of highest-paid athletes over the last year

Paris Saint-Germain superstar Lionel Messi topped the list for pre-tax income in Forbes’ annual ranking of the world’s highest-paid athletes after earning $133 million over the past 12 months.

The 34-year-old soccer icon lost roughly $22 million in salary from his final season with Barcelona, but he still makes roughly $75 million with PSG and saw a significant increase in endorsements that matched his 12-month record from last year’s study.

Lionel Messi

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Lakers forward LeBron James came in second at $121.2 million, beating his own previous record for an NBA player ($96.5M). He’s the 10th athlete and first NBA player to surpass $100 million. Messi’s rival Cristiano Ronaldo ($115M) is third on the list in a year that saw him return to Manchester United from Juventus and earn $60 million in salary. The 10 highest-paid athletes earned $992 million over the past year — a 6% decrease from 2021.

LeBron James

Basketball is the most-represented sport in the top 10 with four athletes, while soccer is in close second with three individuals. Tom Brady, meanwhile, is the only NFL athlete to make the Forbes' list with $83.9 million in earnings at No. 9.

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Cristiano Ronaldo

Here’s the full list of Forbes’ richest athletes of 2022:

1: Lionel Messi — $130 million

2: LeBron James — $121.2 million

3: Cristiano Ronaldo — $115 million

4: Neymar — $95 million

5: Stephen Curry — $92.8 million

6: Kevin Durant — $92.1 million

7: Roger Federer — $90.7 million

8: Canelo Alvarez — $90 million

9: Tom Brady — $83.9 million

10: Giannis Antetokounmpo — $80.9 million

-PTC News with inputs from social media