Lionel Messi named 2020 Forbes Richest footballer

Captain of the Spanish professional football club, Barcelona, Lionel Andrés Messi has been named Forbes richest footballer for the year 2020.

The American business magazine said the Barcelona forward’s total yearly earnings for 2020 including endorsement deals were projected at $126 million.

The figure placed him above Juventus forward, Cristiano Ronaldo whose earning was estimated at $117 million making him the second on the list.

Lionel Messi came on top of the list leaving his fierce rival Cristiano Ronaldo in the second position. Image / Getty Images

Other footballers on the top 10 list

Published eight times in a year, Forbes also named Brazilian and Paris Saint-German professional footballer, Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior as the third richest footballer with an earning value of $96 million while his 21-year-old teammate and French professional footballer Kylian Mbappe came fourth as the youngest to make the top ten list at a wealth value of $42 million.

Liverpool’s Mo Salah, Manchester United’s Paul Pogba, Barcelona’s Antoine Griezmann, Real Madrid’s Gareth Bale, Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski, and Manchester United’s David de Gea were ranked fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth respectively.

Their yearly earnings were valued at $37m, $34m, $33m, $29m, $28m, and $27m correspondingly.

Source: CNN