Paris St-Germain forward Kylian Mbappe has now reached a special stratosphere in the world of professional sports. No, he hasn’t broken any new scoring records in soccer. Instead, he stands at the top of the list for athlete payouts with the news that he is now the highest-paid player in sports right now.
Over most of the last decades, two names have dominated the soccer world. Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have not only been two of the game’s elite talents, but they have also been the most well-compensated athletes on the planet. However, for the first in a very long-time that has officially changed.
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For many, Messi’s Paris St-Germain teammate Kylian Mbappe is the top footballer in the world. The 23-year-old has taken the sport by storm and has ended up on the cover of video games and in many different advertisements. Well, now he is being paid at a similar level to his elite contemporaries and has even surpassed them.
Kylian Mbappe will make $128 million in the next year
On Friday, Forbes updated their rankings of athlete pay and the Frenchman is now officially the highest-paid competitor in his sport. The site estimated that Mbappe will make $128 million in 2022-2023. That is $8 million more than Messi, and nearly $30 million more than Manchester United star Ronaldo.
What makes the achievement all the more impressive is the fact that Messi and Ronaldo did not reach such heights and earn nine figures per year until they were in their 30s. Mbappe will do so while being barely in his 20s. The Ligue 1 superstar signed a new three-year contract with Paris St-Germain in the spring. The deal reportedly pays him $110 million, between his salary and a signing bonus, for this season. He will also net another $18 million in various endorsements with top brands like Nike, Dior, and Oakley.
The $128 million Mbappe is set to make is a new record since Forbes has been tracking athlete pay. In comparison, the biggest earners from athletes in the United States’ most popular sports in 2022 are Lebron James ($121.2 million), Stephen Curry ($92.8 million), and Kevin Durant ($92.1 million).