Cristiano Ronaldo surpasses Lionel Messi with $108m to become world's richest footballer

Juventus superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has achieved immense success on the field for more than a decade. The Portuguese international has now emerged as the highest-earning male football star in the world, beating the likes of Barcelona talisman Lionel Messi and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) superstar Neymar Jr. 

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Who is the richest football player? Football stars suffer due to pay cut

According to Forbes, football stars have suffered financially due to the coronavirus pandemic and the lockdown that followed. Many teams have forced their players to accept a pay cut considering the detrimental impact on their revenue. The Forbes report reveals that the gross wealth of all superstars in the list has gone down by 9% in comparison with the 2019 list.

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Who is the richest football player? Cristiano Ronaldo tops the list 

Cristiano Ronaldo too had agreed to a pay cut at Juventus to help the club deal with the financial losses. But that hasn't toppled his position as the highest-earning football star in the world. Tennis ace Roger Federer is the highest-earning player in the overall list of athletes encompassing all sports, while NBA superstars like Steph Curry and LeBron James also make it to the list alongside the five-time Ballon d'Or winner. 

Lionel Messi occupies the second spot, Cristiano Ronaldo salary details

Cristiano Ronaldo earned a reported amount of €97 million ($107 million), which can be classified as €54 million ($60 million) in salary that he receives from Juventus and €42 million ($46 million) from various brand endorsements. The Juventus superstar is followed by his arch-rival Lionel Messi. The Argentina international pocketed €93 million ($103 million), of which €64 million ($71 million) was earned through his Barcelona salary, while he racked up €28 million ($31 million) in brand endorsements. 

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Neymar makes it top three 

PSG superstar Neymar Jr makes it to the top three with €85 million ($94 million) in earnings. The Brazilian earned a staggering €63 million ($70 million) through his PSG contract, while also pocketed €22 million ($24 million) by endorsing various brands. Neymar is the most expensive football star of all time, courtesy of his €222 million ($246 million) move to the French capital in 2017.

The likes of Mohamed Salah and Kylian Mbappe also make it to the list. While Salah earned €31 million ($34 million) last year, PSG youngster Mbappe made €30 million ($33 million) during that period. 

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