NASCAR Drivers: $1 millionįor a shot at the grand prize, NASCAR drivers hit speeds well over 200 mph for a total of 200 laps around the track. McGregor amassed more than $16 million in endorsements and $32 million in salary and winnings for a grand total of $48 million in 2020 - around $10 million dollars shy of boxer Tyson Fury’s earnings. It’s no surprise that on top of the MMA pecking order is Conor McGregor. The Highest-Paid MMA Fighter Made $48 Million in 2020 Without big name agents or a fighter’s union, MMA fighters find themselves at the mercy of whatever payouts the promotion offers. The top-dollar matches and marquee matchups (for fighters like Conor McGregor) typically bring in millions of dollars for each athlete, but this isn’t true for all of them. The number of previous fights, the frequency of their fights, and, of course, their overall popularity all factor into how rewarding the ruckus in the cage can be for fighters. With an average annual salary of $68,500, many MMA fighters must also rely on sponsorships and big fights if they want to make the injury-prone sport more lucrative.Įxperience matters for MMA fighters. MMA Fighters: $68,500Ī Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) athlete can make almost twice as much money as a boxer. Not bad for a man who’s always one big fight away from retirement. That’s almost 1,520 times more than the average boxer makes, thanks in part to an income from fights on ESPN generated by his promotional contract with his promoter, Top Rank.įury packs a powerful punch in the list of top paid athletes. In 2020, the highest-paid boxer, Tyson Fury, earned more than $57 million. The Highest-Paid Boxer Made $57 Million in 2020 Once a boxer hangs up their gloves and retires, though, they can venture into the world of coaching and training, professions that may actually double their salary. Īfter all these fees and expenses, on average, boxers can take home around $3,125 per month, or $37,501 per year.
HIGHEST PAID SPORT PROFESSIONAL
While momentous Pay-Per-View fights can bring in big bucks from advertisement and sponsorship deals, professional boxers still must generally pay for their own travel, management fees, and training sessions.
In fact, the earliest evidence of this pugilistic pastime dates back to 3000 BC in Egypt. So, if you’re thinking about quitting your current 9-5, completely dedicating yourself to the pursuit of a new sport, and then practicing until you’re good enough at it that you can go professional, here are some very important numbers to consider.īoxing is one of the oldest sports in which man continues to compete. As a bonus, I also spotlighted the highest-paid athlete in that sport for 2020, including how much they earn from endorsements (which, it turns out, is usually an absolutely insane amount).
In this post, I’ve ranked the top sports for average athlete salaries. That’s a lot of cash lining the pockets of executives and athletes all across the world.Īnd let’s take a look at what sport makes the most money and how much the top-paid athlete in each sport can take home in a year. The top 10 sports leagues in the world combine for an annual income of $54.53 billion. We’ve talked before about which athletes make the most money, but what about the sports that pay athletes the most on average?