Soccer and Golf Stars Top the Forbes Highest Paid Athletes List for 2023

When it comes to the world of sports, do you have a favorite team and/or player? Most of us do. Also, I will bet that you have thought, I wonder…

Updated May 11, 2023 9:26 AM EDT

Lionel Messi is one of the most bankable stars in the world, and it took a lot of money to get him to a new team this year.

Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images

When it comes to the world of sports, do you have a favorite team and/or player? Most of us do. Also, I will bet that you have thought, I wonder how much money they get paid? The amount may be staggering.

Forbes magazine is out with its annual list of the Top 10 Highest Paid Athletes. Before you check the list, if you add up just what the top 10 athletes are paid, the total would be well over $1 billion. Amazing.

There are some big changes to the list this year, largely because of the influence of oil money in the Middle East. Soccer stars have been recruited to teams in that area with massive contracts. And the golf world was shaken up with LIV being created, with funding from Saudi Arabia, and attracting some huge names with staggering sums of money.

It all adds up to a whole lot of dough concentrated with a a small group. There are a couple of highly-bankable NBA stars and boxers and tennis players on the list, but noticeably missing from the top is anyone associated with football or baseball.