Ronaldo is the eighth most valuable athlete brand?
A Forbes study reveals that Cristiano Ronaldo is the eighth most valuable athlete brand in the world.
Real Madrid’s record-holding goalscorer is the only footballer to make it to the top 10, with tennis superstar Roger Federer and golf’s Rory McIlroy also featuring.
Athlete brand values are the measured amount by which endorsement income surpluses the average endorsement income earned by the top 10 earning athletes in the same sport during the past year.
The Real Madrid star is eighth in the list, with the worth of $16m (£10.4m).
In spite of his struggles on the course, Tiger Woods is top of the pile with a value of $30m (£19.5m).
Woods hasn’t won a major since the 2008 US Open and also missed the cut in three majors this year.
Joining Woods in the top two is fellow American and golfer Phil Mickelson, valued at $28m (£18.2m).
Roger Federer and LeBron James are are in for a tie at the third spot with a value of $27m (£17.5m).
Indian cricket skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, sprint legend Usain Bolt, golfer Rory McIlroy and boxer Floyd Mayweather also make it to top 10.
The world’s highest-paid athletes are a much richer and more international group than those who dominated the same list 20 years ago, Forbes said.
There is also a much better number of soccer players in the 2015 list compared to that of 20 years ago, which Forbes attributed to a 1995 court verdict that allowed players whose contracts were up to switch teams without a transfer fee.
The top 40 earners in sport over the last year combined to culminate $1.9 billion in prize money, salary and endorsements, up significantly from the $490 million made by the highest earners in 1995, according to Forbes.
Here is the list showing the top 10 athletes disclosed by Forbes.