Ronaldo tops World Cup players in net worth and annual earnings; Messi second

Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal, who plays for Al-Nassr, is the highest-earning and wealthiest player among those from the 48 nations competing at the 2026 North America World Cup, according to new rankings.

The distinction holds even when the comparison is expanded to all professional players throughout the history of the sport.

Forbes on Thursday published its list of the highest-paid players at the 2026 World Cup, estimating that Ronaldo, 41, earned $300 million (approximately 457.3 billion won) over the past year to claim the top spot.

Of that total, $235 million came from on-field income — salary and bonuses from Al-Nassr — while $65 million came from off-field sources such as sponsorship deals and advertising.

Forbes valued Ronaldo's net worth at $1.2 billion, noting that he is one of the rare active players to have reached billionaire status. The magazine also said he is the only active player to have surpassed $2 billion in career earnings.

Lionel Messi of Argentina, 38, ranked second in both net worth and annual earnings. The Inter Miami forward earned an estimated $140 million (approximately 213.4 billion won) over the past year, split evenly between on-field and off-field income at $70 million each.

Both Ronaldo and Messi are appearing at the World Cup for the sixth time in their careers. Ronaldo has yet to win the tournament, while Messi is chasing back-to-back titles with Argentina.

France's Kylian Mbappe, 27, of Real Madrid ranked third at $95 million, followed by Norway's Erling Haaland, 25, of Manchester City at $80 million in fourth, and Brazil's Vinicius Junior, 25, also of Real Madrid, at $60 million in fifth.

Mohamed Salah, 33, of Liverpool came in sixth at $55 million, and Sadio Mane, 34, of Al-Nassr placed seventh at $54 million. Jude Bellingham, 22, of Real Madrid; Lamine Yamal, 18, of Barcelona; Harry Kane, 32, of Bayern Munich; and Neymar, 34, of Santos also made the top 11.

Forbes estimated that the 11 highest-paid players at this World Cup collectively earned $950 million over the past year.