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Ronaldo Tops Forbes 2026; Canelo, Messi Follow, Women Absent

5/26/2026

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Summary

Ronaldo Leads Earnings

Cristiano Ronaldo topped Forbes 2026 list with $300 million, comprising $235 million from Al-Nassr and $65 million elsewhere.
Saúl “Canelo” Álvarez ranked second with $170 million.
Lionel Messi placed third with $140 million.
The list’s cutoff was $54.6 million, resulting in no woman entering the top-50 for the third consecutive year.
Coco Gauff led the 2025 female ranking with $33 million while Serena Williams was the most recent woman in the overall top-50 with $45.3 million in 2023.

Summary

Paul Returns

Jake Paul was knocked out by Anthony Joshua in December 2025, broke his jaw, and paused fighting.
Sean Strickland, fresh from a win, joked about leaving UFC to fight Paul and called his bouts mismatches.
On May 16 2026, Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions held MVP MMA 1, his first MMA event.
Conor McGregor’s 2026 Forbes ranking stemmed mainly from $150 million whiskey sales.
For two years, no MMA fighter entered Forbes’ top-50, showing an earnings gap.

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Ronaldo Leads Earnings

Cristiano Ronaldo topped Forbes 2026 list with $300 million, comprising $235 million from Al-Nassr and $65 million elsewhere.
Saúl “Canelo” Álvarez ranked second with $170 million.
Lionel Messi placed third with $140 million.
The list’s cutoff was $54.6 million, resulting in no woman entering the top-50 for the third consecutive year.
Coco Gauff led the 2025 female ranking with $33 million while Serena Williams was the most recent woman in the overall top-50 with $45.3 million in 2023.

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