Ten Most Powerful Celebrity Athletes

Thanks to Forbes and its penchant for lists, we now have a list of the ten most powerful celebrity athletes. Actually, we have a list of the top 100 most powerful celebrities, but in the interest of time and in keeping with the theme of this blog, I have edited it down to the top ten athletes. What is the criteria you ask? Good question and there is no objective answer it seems. The criteria Forbes sets out consists of two primary factors: money and fame. Of the two, money is probably the more easily calculated, as fame is measured by "buzz" factor, mentions in trade press, hits on blogs, appearances on TV and the like. Basically, fame is Forbes judgement. So, on with the list, numbers below are ranking on the top 100 list:

2. Tiger Woods - big surprise right - only earned over $100 million last year.

5. David Beckham - soccer's US savior, not surprised he is second ranked athlete just surprised at how high

16. LeBron James - the new face of the NBA, his marketing push in China is helping his quest to become a billion dollar athlete

18. Michael Jordan - even retirement doesn't stop the relentless endorsement machine

19. Kobe Bryant - the NBA MVP has now been fully rehabilitated as an endorser

20. Phil Mickelson - golf's number two can still churn out over $50 million a year

23. Roger Federer - the tennis king generates more worldwide buzz than his buddy Tiger

24. Alex Rodriguez - that contract and the Yankees add up to lots of time on Page Six

36. Kimi Raikkonen - worldwide Formula One still beats out Nascar

37. Jeff Gordon - but Nascar has a more loyal fanbase

If there is one common thread among all these athletes, it is lucrative endorsement contracts. The athletes in individual sports, golf and tennis, make the bulk of their money from endorsement contracts, while the athletes in team sports, basketball and baseball, make most of their income from their team contracts. The team sport athletes make substantial sums from endorsements but it is the buzz generated from those endorsements and their on court or on field performance that lands them on this list. In the case of the individual sport athletes, their playing may generate the buzz that lands them here, but their endorsements is what enriches them.