Virat Kohli, the skipper of Indian cricket team, is one of the most famous and loved sportspersons of India. He is the only one who matches the standards of International players when it comes to earnings.
Yes, you read it right! Kohli is the one and only Indian sportsperson to feature in the Forbes list of “World’s Highest-Paid Athletes 2018”. The cricketer has secured the 83rd rank with total earnings of Rs 160 crore ($24 million). The top spot has been secured by American boxing champion Floyd Mayweather (41) with earnings of Rs 1,905 crore ($285 million).
Here is the list of Top 10 Highest-Paid Athletes Of The World:
1. Floyd Mayweather (Boxing) – Rs 1,905 crore ($285 million)
2. Lionel Messi (Soccer) – Rs 742 crore ($111 million)
3. Cristiano Ronaldo (Soccer) – Rs 721 crore ($108 million)
4. Conor McGregor (Mixed Martial Arts) – Rs 662 crore ($99 million)
5. Neymar (Soccer) – Rs 601 crore ($90 million)
6. LeBron James (Basketball) – Rs 571 crore ($85.5 million)
7. Roger Federer (Tennis) – Rs 516 crore ($77.2 million)
8. Stephen Curry (Basketball) – Rs 514 crore ($76.9 million)
9. Matt Ryan (Football) – Rs 450 crore ($67.3 million)
10. Matthew Stafford (Football) – Rs 397 crore ($59.5 million)
Virat Kohli (Cricket) – Rs 160 crore ($24 million) – Rank 83
Click here to check out the complete list
As Indians are crazy for cricket and cricketers are far more popular than players of other sports in our country, there’s no wonder that an Indian cricketer has got place in the list; however, it is quite surprising that no other Indian cricketer has been able to make it to this list.
Undoubtedly, Virat is one of the biggest brands of India and he earns a lot through endorsements of Puma, Pepsi, Audi, Oakley and other brands as Forbes stated,
“Yet like the Indian cricket mega-stars who have come before him, Kohli’s big payday comes off the pitch.”
Kohli is also one of those five players who have been awarded with newly created A+ contracts. This means that his minimum fees will be $1 million.
Even more surprisingly, no woman sportsperson could make it to the list; however Li Na, Maria Sharapova and Serena William, all three female tennis players used to be featured in the list. Nevertheless, Li has retired in 2014, Maria still has to recover from the 15-month ban for using a prohibited substance while Serena’s fees has been reduced to $62,000 from $8 million after she gave birth to a daughter Alexis in September.
Congratulations to Virat Kohli! We wish to see more Indian sportspersons in the list next year.
