• Soccer sits atop the pay pyramid: Cristiano Ronaldo’s earnings headline a record year for athlete income.
• Record contracts span leagues: Shohei Ohtani’s $700Mdealisthelargestever,whileNBAandNFLpacesettersapproach$70M and $60M per year, respectively.
• Outside the “Big Four,” top stars in F1, golf, boxing, NASCAR, and other sports also command eight-figure paydays.
• Baseball’s mega-deals lead in total value: Ohtani’s 10-year, $700 million contract with the Dodgers is the largest in pro sports history, even if others out-earn him annually.
• Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is set to earn roughly $71.3millionperseasonstartingin2027–28underhisfour-yearsupermaxdeal,whileDallasquarterbackDakPrescott’srecentextensionaverages$60M per season.
• In the NHL, Leon Draisaitl set a new benchmark with $14 million annually with the Edmonton Oilers.

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