LeBron James Tops List of Highest-Paid Athletes in 2021

Sportico released its top 100 highest-paid athletes list from 2021 on Wednesday.

LeBron James leads the list overall with a total of $126.9 million earnings from a combined salary/winnings and endorsements.

Boxer Canelo Alvarez leads the list with the highest salary/winnings total with $84 million. By comparison, James made just $36.9 million of his total from his salary and winnings. The remaining $90 million came from endorsements.

The next three top paid athletes are soccer players: Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar. They each made over $100 million last year.

The highest paid female athlete last year was tennis star Naomi Osaka, who ranked No. 20 on the list. She made $53.2 million total last year. The four-time grand slam champion is also the only woman in the Top-50. Fellow tennis star Serena Williams is lone other woman on the list, sitting at No. 52.

Basketball players appeared on the list the most, with NBA players making up 36 of the top 100. Football followed shortly behind with 25 players.