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Striker Lionel Messi, from Barcelona and Argentina, is the highest paid athlete in the world. He has earned $ 127 million in the past 12 months, according to the Forbes Top 100 ranking.
Juventus striker Cristiano Ronaldo is second at $ 109m, while Paris striker St-Germain Neymar is third at $ 105m (£ 82.5m).
Boxer Floyd Mayweather, the biggest salary of last year, was removed from the list.
Serena Williams is the only woman in the top 100, earning $ 29.2 million (£ 22.9 million).
Lewis Hamilton, five-time Formula 1 world champion, and Anthony Joshua, former world heavyweight champion, are the highest paid British athletes, placing 13th with $ 55 million.
The US economic magazine calculated the athletes' earnings by adding their prize money, salaries and mentions between June 2018 and June 2019.
The top 100 includes athletes from 25 countries and their combined gains of $ 4 billion ($ 3.1 billion) are up 5% from the previous year, when Mayweather was first with $ 285 million. dollars (£ 224 million).
The only fight of the American boxer since August 2017 was a boxing match against Japanese kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa in December.
Athletes had to earn a minimum of $ 25 million (£ 19.6 million) to be on this year's list.
Messi is only the second footballer to rank at the top of the standings after Ronaldo, and the eighth different athlete to take first place in the standings since the start of the standings in 1990.
It's also the first time that footballers rank among the top three sportsmen in the world.
Messi is one of 38 non-American athletes on the list, with 62 American stars in the top 100.
The NBA recorded the highest number of athletes with 35, with LeBron James of LA Lakers, the best-paid sport in eighth place with $ 89 million, ahead of Stephen Curry (ninth with $ 79.8 million) and Kevin Durant (with $ 65.4 million).
Paul Pogba of Manchester United is the best Premier League player in 44th place with $ 33 million.
Top 10
1. Lionel Messi $ 127 million (£ 99.8 million)
2. Cristiano Ronaldo $ 109 million (£ 85.6 million)
3. Neymar $ 105 million (£ 82.5 million)
4. Canelo Alvarez $ 94 million (£ 73.8 million)
5. Roger Federer $ 93.4 million (£ 73.3)
6. Russell Wilson $ 89.5 million (£ 70.3 million)
7. Aaron Rodgers $ 89.3 million (£ 70.1 million)
8. LeBron James $ 89 million (£ 69.9 million)
9. Stephen Curry $ 79.8 million (£ 62.7 million)
10, Kevin Durant $ 65.4 million (£ 51.3 million)
See the complete list here.
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