OK, this is stretching the personal finance topic just a bit, but it's kind of fun and does have some meaningful lessons for us "regular" people.
Sports Illustrated has released its list of the 50 top-earning athletes in the U.S. Their numbers include everything these athletes earn: salary, bonuses, winnings, endorsement money and appearance fees. The top 10:
1. Tiger Woods, Golf, $97,628,024
2. Phil Mickelson, Golf, $45,971,710
3. Shaquille O'Neal, Basketball, $34,000,000
4. Kobe Bryant, Basketball, $33,656,932
5. Carson Palmer, Football, $31,550,000
6. LeBron James, Basketball, $28,621,800
7. Derek Jeter, Baseball, $28,000,000
8. Alex Rodriguez, Baseball, $27,000,000
9. Dale Earnhardt Jr., Auto Racing, $25,761,830
10. Michael Vick, Football, $25,400,000
A few thoughts on these:
1. Tiger is certainly "the Man." He's doing ok by himself, isn't he?
2. The majority of the total earnings are from endorsements, not actual winnings. 59% of all income came from endorsements for the top 10. For Tiger and Phil (the top 2), 88% came from endorsements.
3. There's little correlation between winning, championships, and pay. Granted, all of these guys are great athletes, but how many are the best at their sports? By my count, Tiger, maybe Kobe or LeBron, and maybe (and this is stretching it) Jeter or Rodriguez. Three of 10 (at best) are the best players in their sports. As for championships, Tiger, Phil, Shaq, Kobe, and Derek have all won championships at some point in their sport. Only the first three are current champs. Conclusion: personality counts in sports too -- it's not just athletic ability.
4. There are no women on the list.
In addition, they have a list of the top 20-earning foreign athletes. The top 10:
1. Michael Schumacher, Auto Racing, $80,000,000
2. Valentino Rossi, Motorcycle Racing, $30,000,000
3. Ronaldinho, Soccer, $29,100,000
4. Maria Sharapova, Tennis, $25,421,283
5. David Beckham, Soccer, $23,000,000
6. Ichiro Suzuki, Baseball, $22,500,000
7. Roger Federer, Tennis, $22,137,018
8. Ronaldo, Soccer, $21,600,000
9. Hideki Matsui, Baseball, $21,000,0009
10. Christian Vieri, Soccer, $20,000,000
So, what does this have to do with YOUR personal finances? The biggest conclusion I get out of this is the many ways these guys (and one lady) earn money. You (and I!) should think about doing the same. Sure, your career is your most valuable financial asset, offering you many financial benefits. (You can make the most of it by getting a college degree and managing your career to its full potential -- doing this well can earn you millions of dollars in extra income throughout your lifetime). But there are other ways you can supplement your salary as well. Want some ideas? Check out these posts from Free Money Finance:
ridiculous
Posted by: Joe | August 03, 2006 at 09:23 AM
Who is Carson Palmer that he matters? (I've heard of the others and though I can't name their teams, I've heard of them.)
Posted by: mapgirl | August 03, 2006 at 12:41 PM
Cincinnati Bengals QB. He was the guy who, just a week or so after signing his big deal, had his knee blown out in a playoff game with the Pittsburgh Steelers. His recovery was a recent cover story for Sports Illustrated.
Not that I follow football or anything. ;-)
Posted by: FMF | August 03, 2006 at 12:58 PM
I think the topic of professional athletes and income vs. wealth is fascinating. Whenever I hear someone ranting about overpaid star athletes, I wonder if it's actually a myth when compared to other occupations or industries. Aren't there always a select few in any given field making huge amounts of money? Don't they also produce a ton of revenue for their franchises? There are some surprising statistics about former professional athletes and problems many of them face with finances, careers after sports retirement, alcohol/drug abuse, and even shortened life expectancy (though I'm not sure if this is true for all sports or just the NFL).
Also, I think there is a similarity between pursuing a career in sports and winning the lottery. A lot of parents invest excessively in their kids' athletic skills hoping it will pay off in the form of a college scholarship or big contract some day. Is this any more realistic than using the Lotto as your retirement plan? I'm a huge fan of sports and exercise for fitness and health benefits, competition, camaraderie, and fun ... but I worry about young athletes who don't seem to have a "Plan B".
Posted by: Skott | August 03, 2006 at 05:43 PM
Are the millions in Euro?....and I don't quite get how they are getting paid....
says Total - $20,000,000....However, on the bottom description..."signed a "$120,000,000" ...so the $20,000,000 is like a regular paid per season?
Posted by: Nitrous | December 18, 2006 at 06:27 PM