Top 25 World’s Highest Paid Athletes of 2016

These highest paid athletes mentioned in the list below are doing their best in entertaining the audience with their sports skill. Lucrative salary package with handsome scholarship are offered to these players for their unconditional devotion towards the world of sports.

Two athletes have dominated the top of Forbes’ annual look at the highest-earners in sports over the past decade and a half: Golfer Tiger Woods landed the No. 1 spot 12 times, while boxer Floyd Mayweather ranked first three of the past four years.

But with Mayweather hanging up his gloves and Woods hampered by injuries, there is an opening at the top. Filling the gap is the biggest star in the biggest sport on the planet.

This year, soccer icon Cristiano Ronaldo is the world’s highest-paid athlete, with earnings of $88 million over the past 12 months from salary, bonuses and endorsements.

It is a good time to be a world-class athlete in a popular team sport. TV money is fueling massive increases in player salaries across baseball, basketball, football and soccer. The cutoff for the top 100 athletes is $20.8 million, up $2 million over last year.

Ronaldo’s Real Madrid contract is worth more than $50 million a year in salary and bonus and runs through 2018. He triggered one of those seven-figure bonuses by leading Real to the Champions League title when he found the back of the net on the clinching penalty kick.

The three-time FIFA player of the year is a marketing juggernaut earning $32 million off the pitch by our count. He kicked off a contract extension with Nike NKE +0.60% last year worth $13 million a year (Nike is partnered with 50 members of the top 100). Other Ronaldo endorsement partners include Tag Heuer,Herbalife , Pokerstars, Clear Shampoo and more. He has his own line of suits, cologne, shirts, shoes, underwear and hotels under construction.

Forbes brings to you the top 25 world’s highest paid athletes.

1. Cristiano Ronaldo