Lionel Messi has been ranked first in the list of highest-paid athletes released by Forbes

• Lionel Messi has topped the list of Forbes Highest-Paid Athletes 2022 with a reported income of $130 million, followed by Basketball player, Lebron James with $121.2 million while Cristiano Ronaldo was third with $115 million.
• Messi had moved from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain in August 2021 and Cristiano Ronaldo rejoined Manchester United from Juventus in the same month.
• Forbes calculates the estimates based on prize money, salaries and bonuses, and sponsorship deals.

The top 10 highest earners, collectively brought in $992 million in pre-tax gross earnings over the last year.

• Lionel Messi: $130 million
• LeBron James: $121.2 million
• Cristiano Ronaldo: $115 million
• Neymar: $95 million
• Stephen Curry: $92.8 million
• Kevin Durant: $92.1 million
• Roger Federer: $90.7 million
• Canelo Alvarez: $90 million
• Tom Brady: $83.9 million
• Giannis Antetokounmpo: $80.9 million