Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi Among Highest-Paid Players at 2026 World Cup
Forbes has released a ranking of the highest-paid players competing at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with Cristiano Ronaldo topping the list at $300 million in annual earnings. Both Ronaldo and Messi have recently joined the billionaires' club, with net worths of $1.2 billion and $1.1 billion respectively. The tournament will feature record ticket prices, with final tickets reaching nearly $33,000 and resale prices exceeding $2 million per seat.
Forbes has published its list of the highest-paid players at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will be held across the United States, Canada, and Mexico with 48 teams competing for the first time in the tournament's history. Cristiano Ronaldo leads the earnings list at $300 million annually ($235 million on-field, $65 million off-field), making him the world's top-earning athlete across all sports for four consecutive years. Lionel Messi ranks second at $140 million ($70 million on-field, $70 million off-field), with both players now billionaires. Kylian Mbappé rounds out the top three at $95 million. The tournament is notable for unprecedented ticket pricing, with FIFA listing final tickets at $32,970 and resale market prices reaching $2.3 million per seat—more than 20 times the cost of equivalent tickets at the 2022 Qatar World Cup. Both Ronaldo and Messi will be appearing in their sixth World Cup, a record shared with Mexico's Guillermo Ochoa.
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The Highest-Paid Players At The 2026 World Cup
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