Cristiano ronaldo hits billion dollar net worth but far from richest footballer unexpected name takes the top spot

Cristiano ronaldo hits billion dollar net worth but far from richest footballer unexpected name takes the top spot

Portuguese superstar footballer Cristiano Ronaldo has officially reached billionaire status, another mark in the book of the athlete many consider to be the most famous in the world. Following his fresh extension with Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr, Ronaldo’s bumper mega-contract – which extends beyond just a salaried wage and bonuses — has him rubbing shoulders with giants of the sports business landscape.

While Ronaldo surpassed one billion dollars in career earnings all the way back in 2020, he has established himself with a net worth of 1 billion US dollars, as per celebritynetworth.com. This follows a career glittering with incredible endorsement deals to boost his status as one of the highest-paid football players in the world, including a blockbuster lifetime deal with Nike.

Already the man with the most followers on social media platform Instagram, Ronaldo’s extension at Al Nassr promises him an absolutely staggering USD 700 million dollar contract across two years, which breaks his own record of the highest per-annum contract in sports history.

Within the contract is included a whopping 48 million dollar signing bonus, and also a 15% ownership stake in the Al Nassr club, who are at the forefront of Saudi football's cash-laden push to establish themselves closer to the top of global football. Ronaldo's equity in the team he represents provides a financial underline on his status as the face of the Saudi football project ahead of their hosting of the FIFA World Cup in 2034.

Why Ronaldo isn't the richest professional footballer in the world

Ronaldo beats his great rival Lionel Messi to the mark, with the Argentinian estimated to hold an 850 million dollar net worth in the wake of his own mega-deal at Inter Miami in Major League Soccer. Ronaldo has also outdone the earnings of the Inter Miami owner and the man considered to be the trailblazer of football endorsement deals, David Beckham, whose net worth across his career and post-career business is estimated to be in the 600 million dollar range.

However, Ronaldo still falls short of Faiq Bolkiah, widely considered the professional footballer with the highest net worth, given he is the nephew of the Sultan of Brunei, one of the richest men in the world. Bolkiah captains the Brunei national team and represents Ratchaburi in the Thai first division as a professional footballer, and is valued at 20 billion US dollars thanks to his uber-rich family.