Conor McGregor Is Officially the World’s Highest Paid Athlete
The UFC superstar made a staggering $180 million in the last 12 months.
Conor McGregor may have taken an “L” in his first UFC fight since 2020 at the hands of Dustin Poirier, but the Irish MMA icon is dominating all athletes from a financial perspective.
Forbes has announced that McGregor leads the financial mag’s World’s Top 10 Highest-Paid Athletes list for 2021. In the last 12 months, the brash brawler scooped $22 million in his sole Octagon appearance versus Poirier and a whopping $158 million elsewhere for a total of $180 million in earnings during that period.
Most of that income comes from the $150 million sale of his majority stake in Proper No. Twelve Irish whiskey brand, but other endorsement deals helped out as well. He’s only the third athlete to ever earn more than $70 million outside of his respective sport, after Roger Federer and Tiger Woods.
Speaking of Federer, the tennis legend notched No. 7 at $90 million, dropping from No. 1 last year. Soccer greats Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo again took No. 2 and 3 with $130 million and $120 million incomes, respectively.
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott banked $107.5 million to come in at No. 4, while LeBron James rounded out the top 5 with $96.5 million.
Check out the world’s 10 top-earning athletes, according to Forbes:
10. Kevin Durant – $75 Million
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9. Tom Brady – $76 Million
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8. Lewis Hamilton – $82 Million
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7. Roger Federer – $90 Million
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6. Neymar – $95 Million
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5. LeBron James – $96.5 Million
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4. Dak Prescott – $107.5 Million
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3. Cristiano Ronaldo – $120 Million
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2. Lionel Messi – $130 Million
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1. Conor McGregor – $180 Million
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