Who Are The Highest Paid EU Athletes?

Key Takeaways

• Cristiano Ronaldo earned $300M in 2026. That value is more than the next three EU athletes on the Forbes list combined.
• Nine EU athletes appear in the Forbes top 50 highest-paid athletes. Soccer accounts for four of them.
• France places two athletes in the top 12: Karim Benzema ($104M) and Kylian Mbappé ($95M).
• Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner both earn more from endorsements than from prize money, making tennis the most brand-efficient sport for EU athletes on the list.
• Max Verstappen is the only non-soccer EU athlete to rank in the global top 15. He earned $86M in 2026.
• Spain leads all EU countries with two athletes on the list: Jon Rahm ($107M) and Carlos Alcaraz ($61.5M).

Highest-Paid EU Athletes on the Forbes Global List

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Nine athletes from EU member states appear in the Forbes 2026 list of the world’s 50 highest-paid athletes. They span five sports and seven countries.

Cristiano Ronaldo is the highest-paid athlete worldwide. He earned $300M in 2026. The combined earnings of Rahm, Karim Benzema, and Kylian Mbappé still fall short of Ronaldo’s total. 

Ronaldo plays for Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia. His on-field contract accounts for $235M of his total. The remaining $65M comes from endorsements with brands including Nike and Herbalife. No other athlete in the world, EU or otherwise, comes close to that salary figure.

Mbappé is the only other EU-nationality athlete currently playing in a top European league. He joined Real Madrid in 2024 and earned $95M in 2026. Benzema plays for Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia. Both earned substantially from club contracts. The gap to Ronaldo reflects how the Saudi Pro League has repriced top-end soccer talent above any European league.

Tennis Produces the Highest Brand Returns for EU Athletes

Tennis players Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner both rank in the Forbes Top 50. Alcaraz earned $61.5M. This value is a combination of $38M from endorsements and $23.5M from prize money. Sinner earned $54.6M, with $32M from endorsements and $22.6M from prize money.

In both cases, off-court income exceeds on-court income. That ratio sets tennis apart from every other sport among EU athletes on this list.

• Soccer players like Benzema and Mbappé earn the bulk of their income from club salaries.
• Auto racer Max Verstappen’s $86M total earnings come primarily from his Red Bull Racing contract. 
• Jon Rahm earns $97M of his $107M from on-course performance. That figure reflects his LIV Golf deal.

Tennis generates smaller prize pools than team sports. It produces athletes with unusually strong global brand profiles. Alcaraz and Sinner are both under 24. Both hold multiple Grand Slam titles. Their endorsement earnings already rival those of athletes more than a decade into their careers.

The contrast points to a structural difference. Team sport salaries in Europe are capped by league economics and club revenues. Tennis sponsorship income scales with global visibility. Both Alcaraz and Sinner have built it fast.

For EU athletes overall, the 2026 Forbes list confirms two things. Soccer still dominates by volume and by earnings at the very top. For younger EU athletes in individual sports, tennis is one of the most efficient paths to sustained off-field income.