Roger Federer Tops In World's Highest-Paid Athlete

Roger Feder has emerged as the highest-paid athlete of the year whilst Juventus forward Cristiano Ronaldo overtook his Barcelona counterpart, Lionel Messi, to be at the top spot in football. 

The Covid-19 pandemic has had a serious impact on the income of most sportsmen as the spread of the killer bug forced the cancellation of professional sports events globally over fears that large gatherings will aid the spread. 

In football, players and coaches of some clubs in Europe were made to take pay-cut after an agreement was reached, which according to Forbes impacted their income and that paved the way for Federer to become the first tennis player to be ranked atop in the world's highest-paid athlete. 

"The coronavirus pandemic triggered salary cuts for soccer stars Messi and Ronaldo, clearing the way for a tennis player to rank as the world's highest-paid athlete for the world's highest-paid athlete for the first time," said the magazine.

Federer topped the list having earned £86.3m ($106.3m) from tennis tournaments within 12 months and that includes the $100m (£81.2m) he made from endorsement. Ronaldo followed in second place with total earnings of £85.6m and in the third position is Messi with £84.5 million. 

LeBron James leads as the highest-paid player in the NBA with total earnings of £71.6m, ranking him fifth in the top five behind Paris Saint Germain striker Neymar Jr. (£77.6m) who is fourth.