Great Achievements in Sports Can Make You a Rich Celebrity and Skyrocket Your Net Worth

Since ages, the athletics is popular across the world as an entertainment sport, and sportspersons are taking part in different competitions to prove their superiority and superior physical skills. There are a number of evidences in the form of cave paintings and drawings, images and old texts that show the presence of athletics in France, Syria, Mongolia, China, Greece, Persia, Libya, Rome, and others thousands of years ago. Athletics continue to be favourite pass times and entertainment provider for many in different countries in old days, and even today. The popularity of sports reached its zenith after the advent of print and paper media, and electronic media. Today, people from every nook and corner of the world can watch live games through their televisions, videos and others.

There are many sportspersons, who have achieved phenomenal success in some sport, and earned name, money and fame. Few athletes are even elected to the Hall of Fame and found ranking on Forbes list. They are also prominently figured on The Times, electronic channel, and other popular news magazines. They enjoy celebrity status with high net worth and participate in local, national, and international sporting events and competitions, representing their club, educational institute or country, and in the process, they earn hefty pay, bonus and endorsements.

The celebrity sportspersons are also hired by rich clubs and paid fabulous sum of money to play for their clubs. There are many clubs and organizations that sign an agreement with the star players and pay them astounding sum of money to play for their club. They are hired for a specified period, and once their contracts expire, they are transferred to other clubs with higher pays/fees on the basis of their past performance. The earning of sportspersons from football, basketball, baseball, and others sports are not limited to pay/salary, but also include bonuses and incomes from endorsements.

Among different sports, Soccer is immensely popular throughout the world. Soccer players earn millions by playing for their respective clubs. According to Forbes, the corporate shower more money on football than any other sports. Annually, best players draw more than $250 million from different sponsors. In 2011, the total endorsement earnings of players from Puma, Nike, Adidas, Pepsi, and others were around $111 million.

According to the Forbes 2012 World’s Highest Paid Soccer Players list, the five highest paid soccer players in 2011 include David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Wayne Rooney, and Kaka respectively.

Beckham was ranked No. 1in Forbes list as the highest paid footballers with total earning of $46 million. He is from England and plays for Los Angeles Galaxy. His earnings also include endorsement incomes from H&M underwear, Burger King, Adidas, Coty, and Samsung. He is currently, highest paid athlete in the world.

Cristiano Ronaldo holds No. 2 position in the Forbes list with earnings of $42 million. His origin country is Portugal, and he plays for Real Madrid. He also has massive fans and followers in social networking sites such as Facebook, and Twitter. In Facebook his fans numbers over 8 million, and on Twitter, he has more than 42 million followers. His massive surge in popularity has also earned him more than $ 21 million from sponsors such as Castrol, Nike, Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer, and others. His best performances in the field and scoring of the highest number of goals have also tremendously increased his image rights, face value, and game fees.

Forbes list has ranked Lionel Messi, No. 3 highest paid soccer player with earnings of $39 million. He is 24 years old, and his country of origin is Argentina. He plays for Barcelona club, and also ranked as world’s best player, three years in a row. His earnings from the sponsors like EA Sports, Pepsi, Adidas and others are to the tune of $19 million. He also earned $20 million from salary and bonuses.

According to Forbes list, Rooney is ranked 4th with an earnings of $24 million. He is from England and plays for Manchester United. His sponsors are EA Sports and Nike. He also endorsed for Coca-Cola, but his contract was expired last year.

Kaka is 30 years old and hails from Brazil. He plays for Real Madrid, and his earning last year was $21 million from both salary and bonuses and sponsors like Adidas and EA Sports.

Other than football, sportspersons from other sporting field also earn millions from salary, bonuses, winnings, and endorsements. According to the Forbes “The World’s Highest paid Athletes List” June 2013, Tiger Wood was ranked No.1Golf player with a total earning of $78.1 million, of which the earnings from salary and winnings were $13.1, and $65 million from endorsements.

In the same period, the total earning of Tennis player Roger Federer, ranked 2nd in Forbes was $71.5 million including, $6.5 million in salary and winnings, and $65 million in endorsements. Koye Brant, ranked 3rd is a marvellous Basketball player with a total earning of $61.9 million that include $27.9 million in salary and winning, and $34 million in endorsements. LeBron James is ranked No. 4. He is also a notable Basketball player and his annual earnings touch $59.8 million dollars, divided as $17.8 million from salary and winnings, and $42 million form sponsors. Forbes places Drew Brees in 5th position with an earnings of $51million combining $40 million from salary and winning and $11 million from sponsors.

The immense popularity of sports has not only earned sportsperson, fame and fortune, but their net worth has also increased tremendously. They enjoy millions of followers and public fascination from every corner of the world. Their earnings also reach millions, and they enjoy a celebrity status.