This article will tell you about the top 10 most marketable athletes in the world, where Lionel Messi has topped the list.
According to SportsPro Media, Lionel Messi has surpassed Cristiano Ronaldo as the world’s most marketable athlete.
The sports business publication has published a list of the top 50 marketable sportsmen for 2023, with Messi finishing first for the second time in his career. Ronaldo finished first last year, but he isn’t even in the top ten this year.
Lionel Messi finished first in the 2020 rankings and has done so again since joining MLS club Inter Miami. The deal of the 2022 FIFA World Cup champion with the Herons includes income from merchandise sales.
According to the Mirror, the 36-year-old also has a relationship with Apple, which is the streaming service for MLS matches. They’ve made a four-part documentary about Messi’s epic World Cup victory in Qatar last year.
Here’s the top 10 list of the most marketable athletes in the world:
- Lionel Messi
- LeBron James
- Alex Morgan
- Giannis Antetokounmpo
- Megan Rapinoe
- Mikaela Shiffrin
- Lewis Hamilton
- Simone Biles
- Kylian Mbappe
- Max Verstappen
Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo has dropped all the way to 27th on the list of the top 50 most marketable sportsmen. In January, the five-time UEFA Champions League winner left Europe for Saudi Pro League giants Al-Nassr. Last year, when at Premier League powerhouse Manchester United, the 38-year-old finished first.
The lone male footballer to make the top ten is Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappe, who is ranked ninth. Other football players who have made the top 50 include:
- Harry Kane
- Bukayo Saka
- Neymar
- Luis Suarez
- Erling Haaland
- Thiago Silva
- Son Heung Min
- Mohamed Salah
- Marcus Rashford
Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe of the USWNT have finished in third and fifth place, respectively, for women’s football.
