The top athletes in today’s world are instantly recognizable from their consistent heroics on a sporting turf. Their consistency, will to win, to perform and entertain have marked them out from their peers and made them part of the everyday fabric of life. Another key aspect of their popularity is their social media presence. Sports personalities today are also followed for their life off the field as well, with fans eager to get a little peek behind the veil of the secluded lives that their favourite sports stars live under.
As a result, the athletes of today are also conscious of their off-field presence with their mentality, discipline and their laser sharp focus making them role models for the younger generation. Wouldn’t people want to buy shoes or NFTs from an athlete who is the most successful? Therefore, social media is the wind that carries their brands far and wide across the reaches of the globe.
One look at the list of the most followed sports persons on social media and you understand why they are paid the big bucks for a social media post (note that LeBron James and Virat Kohli are the only non-footballer names on the list).Name Sport Number of Followers* Cristiano Ronaldo Football 632 million Lionel Messi Football 503 million Virat Kohli Cricket 269 million Neymar Football 222 million LeBron James Basketball 159 million Kylian Mbappe Football 118 million Karim Benzema Football 76.8 million Marcelo Football 68 million Sergio Ramos Football 63.6 million Mo Salah Football 63.2 million
*only on Instagram
You know what comes next. Brands quickly align themselves with these athletes to capitalize on their wave of popularity and increase their commercial and social footprint. The mutual benefit means sportspersons are offered juicy endorsement contracts and high payment fees for social media posts to put their partner brands on their accounts and thereby, on the social map.
From lifetime deals with the biggest sports brands to selling NFTs and underwear, meet the 10 star sportspersons who are paid the highest fees for a social media post/advert.
10.) Paul Pogba – $580,000-600,000
Paul Pogba is the only player not on the list mentioned above, but that hasn’t stopped him from gaining the big bucks on social media. The Frenchman’s 61.5 million-strong Instagram following continues even though he faces a lengthy time away from the game thanks to a four-year ban that was slapped on him in February 2024, following a doping scandal that he has been fighting against.
Despite his time away from the game, Pogba continues to remain active on social media posting content on his return to fitness in the hope that he can overturn his ban and return to the beautiful game. A few months after his ban, Pogba became an investor and endorser of Chimi, a French eyewear brand, posting regularly of the signature Pogba line of eyewear that the company releases.
It is reported that Pogba charges around $600,000 for each social media post, with the Frenchman counting Adidas and Pepsi among the major brands that promote their products with the 31-year-old.
9.) Marcelo – $619,000
One of the most decorated players of all time, Marcelo endured a trophy-laden 15-years at Real Madrid before he returned to hometown club Fluminense. Upon his return, the Brazilian led his side to the Campeonato Carioca, the state championship of Rio de Janeiro, before winning the club’s first-ever Copa Libertadores title in 2023.
Fluminense followed it up by winning the Recopa Sudamericana in 2024 making Marcelo a part of the club’s first ever continental triumphs. He then led the Rio-based club to the final of the 2023 Club World Cup marking a very successful return to his hometown club.
Marcelo’s successes on the pitch and his fun-loving personality marks him out for brands who capitalize on the 36-year-old’s 68 million-strong Instagram following. The former Real Madrid left-back makes good on this popularity by charging a hefty $620,000 per social media post. But that hasn’t stopped major brands like Adidas, Pepsi, Gillette and EA Sports from associating themselves with Marcelo.
8.) Karim Benzema – $668,000-670,000
Yet another Real Madrid legend, Karim Benzema comes ahead of his former teammate with an estimated earning of nearly $670,000 for a social media post.
Benzema endorses brands such as Adidas, Bwin, and Hyundai among others and the 2022 Ballon d’Or winner is set to add more brands to his portfolio thanks to his move to Saudi Arabian club Al Ittihad. Benzema cited his faith as a Muslim to be the key reason for his move and his switch to Jeddah opens up the chance to collaborate with many brands in the Gulf and the Middle East.
7.) David Beckham – $785,500-800,000
The Inter Miami owner continues to be one of the most charismatic characters in world sport and his marketability continues to shine thanks to his good looks, popularity and savvy marketing nous. Beckham is the only retired player on this list which indicates his credibility as a commercial magnet.
Beckham continues to endorse plenty of brands with the most prominent among them being Adidas, Tudor watches, Haig Club Whiskey, Breitling, Armani and Gillette. For his services, Beckham charges around $800,000 ensuring that his coffers continue to swell long into his retirement life.
6.) Kylian Mbappe – $1 million
The youngest athlete on this list, Mbappe continues to shoot up the ranks in terms of his earnings on and off-the-pitch as well as his growing marketability. Considered by many as the best player in the world currently, Mbappe makes his off-field earnings from endorsements with brands such as Nike, Hublot, Oakley and EA Sports. He also runs his own production company which has worked on content projects with brands like NBA.
As a result, the Frenchman, still 25, charges close to a million dollars for a social media post. With his 118 million-strong Instagram following only set to increase following a dream move to Real Madrid, expect Mbappe’s stature and social media value to increase manifold in the coming years.
5.) LeBron James – $1.5 million
One of only two non-footballers in this list (more on the other later). James has built a career not just on his incredibly illustrious career, but also his profitable ventures off the court.
James endorses more than 15 brands and charges around $1.5 million per social media post. A key part of his deals is that he is also an investor in a lot of those companies, including Blaze Pizza, Beats by Dre, Uninterrupted, Calm app and many more. James also endorses major brands like Life Water, Louis Vuitton and DraftKings.
A key marketing gimmick of LeBron James is his ‘Taco Tuesday’ posts on his Instagram account. What started as a simple act of fun for James with family and friends turned into a pop culture movement so big that James decided to copyright the popular moniker, which was eventually rejected. Premier taco brand Taco Bell took advantage of the popularity, signing James as a brand endorser.
Another key component of James’ social media popularity and revenue is his collaboration with Nike, with whom he has a lifetime deal. Nike regularly releases signature LBJ (his initials) shoes and sportswear. Nike and Lebron’s first sportswear collaboration was with Liverpool FC where LeBron holds a minority stake thanks to his association with the club’s owners Fenway Sports Group.
Nike and LeBron announced a sportswear collaboration with Liverpool FC in early 2024 (Credit: kingjames [IG])
Considering the regularity of his posts and how well connected he is with his endorsers, one would only expect his fees and his brand value to increase further.
4.) Neymar – $2.1 million
The Brazilian moved to Saudi Pro League champions Al-Hilal and continues to rake in the moolah with a huge salary and perks in Riyadh. Owing to his popularity, Neymar is also well placed to add to his burgeoning salary and brand value as the 31-year-old continues to add more to his commercial portfolio.
The Brazilian is a regular on social media and his major endorsers include Brazilian games platform Blaze, boot endorser Puma and other brands such as Konami and Cadbury. What also helps is that the Brazilian has a strong following of 222 million Instagram followers. Managing all his brand endorsements through his holding company NJR (short for Neymar Jr), the former Barcelona and PSG forward charges just over $2 million for each social media post.
Voted among the most marketable athletes in the world, Neymar’s regularity and his commercial viability have only increased since his move to the Gulf. Provided he continues to shine on the pitch, one can only expect his fees on and off the pitch to reach even more gargantuan levels.
3.) Virat Kohli – $2.35 million
At #3, we have King Kohli who charges around $2.35 million for each social media post. Leading the fortunes of the most populous and cricket-crazy nation on Earth, Kohli’s personality and swagger endears him to fans and brands alike. Consequently, Kohli is the most followed Asian, cricketer and Indian on social media with 269 million followers on Instagram putting him only behind the legendary duo of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo (more on them next).
And Kohli’s Instagram profile features a bevy of sponsored and paid content with brands such as American Tourister, Puma, Boost, Livspace, Phillips, Mobile Premier League and Ocean Beverages associating themselves with the Indian batsman. Another key part of his social media portfolio is One8Commune which was created as a signature lifestyle brand in collaboration with Puma and contains various assets such as restaurants, bars, sportswear, wellness products and more.
2.) Lionel Messi – $4-4.5 million
The little Argentine has to contend with being second best for once but is still earning a cool $4 million+ for each social media post. Messi currently has a following of over 500 million on Instagram and his marketability has skyrocketed since his move to David Beckham’s Inter Miami.
In the country that’s the hotbed of pop culture, the record Ballon d’Or winner has quickly set himself up to profit collaborating with popular brands like Lowe’s, Adidas, Apple, Konami, Mastercard, Hard Rock Cafe, popular NFT brand Sorare and also his own energy drink brand Mas+ which Messi started in May 2024.
Messi launched his own hydration drink named Mas+ (Credit: leomessi [IG])
Having achieved everything in his career, Messi has been busy adding to his bank balance and building his brand & business portfolio in Miami, but not without making his mark on the pitch, scoring 26 goals in 30 games for Inter Miami since making the seismic move in 2023.
1.) Cristiano Ronaldo – $5-6 million
At the top we have the maverick Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo who continues to rule the roost on social media thanks to being the most followed person on social media. Ronaldo is reported to charge an eye-watering $6 million per social media post and why wouldn’t he?
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has established himself among the greatest names in football and is one of the most popular names in the world, even beyond football. As a result, brands come in their droves to get the Portuguese to adorn their advertisements and partnerships with his reach taking their brand far and wide.
And Ronaldo has been generous, posting numerous bits of content with brands such as Binance (a popular crypto and trading platform), Whoop (a fitness wearable company) and Erakulis (a fitness app). His partnership with Nike is well-documented with the Swoosh releasing signature CR7 boots regularly which are always in demand.
Ronaldo’s business interests are also prominent on his social media with the 2016 European Championship winner’s namesake brand selling anything from perfumes to underwear to visits to one of his many CR7 x Pestana hotels in his native Portugal. Like LeBron, Ronaldo has also made smart moves to buy investment stakes in the companies that he endorses which builds his value manifold.
Now competing in his sixth European Championship, continuing to be at peak fitness (a trademark of his career) and showing no signs of slowing down at 39, CR7 has marked himself to succeed and break records off the field just like he did throughout his career with a ball at his feet.
