LeBron James never ceases to amaze everyone with his phenomenal talent, proving why he is the true king.
Forbes has recently published a list of the top 10 highest-earning athletes, and it turns out that an NBA superstar has clinched the second spot, making him the world’s second-highest-paid athlete. While his performance on the court has certainly contributed to his impressive net worth of approximately $850 million, as noted in previous reports by AfroTech, it’s actually his lucrative business deals outside of basketball that have propelled him up the rankings. According to reports, he earned a staggering $121.2 million in 2021 thanks to ventures such as his “Space Jam” reboot and a variety of endorsement deals. Moreover, his talk show called “The Shop: Uninterrupted” has also been a major contributor to his earnings.
LeBron James has secured his spot as one of the highest-earning athletes in 2021, coming in second place to Lionel Messi who was named the richest athlete. However, James isn’t too concerned with competition and instead focuses on beating his own earnings. He surpassed his previous record of $96.5 million by earning an estimated $121.2 million this year. The bulk of his income comes from off-court endeavors, including endorsements, appearances, memorabilia sales, and licensing fees, which totaled around $80 million. On the court, the LA Lakers player earned $41.2 million.
Forbes recently released their list of the 10 Highest-Paid Athletes of 2022 and surprisingly, all of them were male. Notably missing from the list were two top-earning female athletes, Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams, who respectively earned $60 million and $49.5 million in 2021. However, Venus Williams, another tennis superstar, claimed the third spot on the list with earnings of $11.3 million last year. It’s worth noting that both Osaka and Williams were previously featured in an earlier Forbes list covered by AfroTech. For those interested, below is a compilation of the highest-paid Black athletes in the world as per the latest Forbes list.
