“Money” isn’t just a nickname for Floyd Mayweather — it’s a billing he has lived up to.
The undefeated boxer and current jail inmate topped Forbes’ list of the highest-paid athletes, unseating Tiger Woods who topped the list since 2001. What’s more is that another boxer was second on the list.
Manny Pacquiao — Floyd’s biggest rival even though they haven’t fought — came in second on the list. Floyd earned $85 million from his two fights, while Pac Man pulled in $62 million including $6 million from endorsements.
Tiger Woods’ total earnings were $59.4 million, 55 of which came from endorsements. LeBron James was fourth, Roger Federer pulled in over $52 million to come in fifth, and Kobe Bryant was the second basketball player on the list coming in sixth. Phil Mickelson was seventh thanks largely to his $43 million in endorsements.
Soccer players David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo were 8th and 9th respectably, while Peyton Manning came in 10th despite not playing last year because of a neck injury.
13 basketball players made the top 100, while 30 football players made it, topping any sport. However, the football numbers are somewhat misleading because several players were paid bonuses last summer that didn’t hurt the salary cap, but increased their earnings.
Athletes from 11 different sports made the list, including two cricket players and track star Usain Bolt, who earns $20.3 million. Two women made the list, and both were tennis players.
Maria Sharapova’s $27.9 million placed her 26th on the list. Li Na made $18.4 million thanks largely to endorsement deals with multiple Chinese companies.
So yeah, now that you’ve seen the numbers you know whey Floyd Mayweather Jr. tells everyone his paycheck is like your social security number.
Here’s the entire Forbes list.
