The list of 100 highest-paid athletes for 2024 does not contain any women

Not a single woman was named to a list of the 100 highest-paid athletes compiled and released by Sportico on Wednesday.

The list, which includes players from eight sports and 27 countries, puts soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo at the top with a reported $260 million from his salary, winnings and endorsements during 2024.

Following Ronaldo with a reported earning of $153.8 million is Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry. Tyson Fury, Lionel Messi and LeBron James round out the rest of the top five.

As the list goes on, dozens of athletes from basketball, soccer, football, golf and more tout millions of dollars in earnings.

U.S. tennis phenomenon Coco Gauff was the top-earning female athlete last year, raking in an estimated $30.4 million in earnings. That number puts her seven million dollars off the number 100 highest-paid athlete, Minnesota Vikings quarterback Daniel Jones, who earned $37.5 million in 2024.

Jones notably left the New York Giants in November after being benched earlier in the month due to poor game performances. While at the Giants, the NFL reported Jones’ offensive line to be ranked dead last in the league, scoring 15.6 points per game.

Gauff made history last summer as the youngest Olympic flag bearer for Team USA, lifting up the stars and stripes in Paris at just 20 years old.

The tennis star also claimed the doubles title at the 2024 French Open in June, becoming the youngest player in 19 years to win both a singles and doubles Grand Slam title.

In November, Gauff took the gold in the singles championship at the WTA finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, becoming the fourth American to win the tournament before turning 21.

Despite tacking her name on those record boards, Gauff stayed outside the bubble of the 100 top-earning athletes last year.

The 2024 report is the fourth annual list from Sportico on top athlete’s earnings and the second year in a row that no women were included.

Tennis champion Naomi Osaka was the last woman to make the list, being the highest-paid female athlete in 2022 and ranking 20th on the list with her reported $53.2 million in earnings. That same year, Serena Williams was listed as 52nd on the list, earning $35.3 million.

Osaka and Williams also made the 2021 list, with Osaka ranking 15th with $55.2 million in earnings and Williams coming in at 44th with $35.5 million in earnings.

According to Sportico, the top 100 this year earned an estimated $6.2 billion in total income in 2024, including $4.8 billion in salary and prize money. The total figure also counts $1.4 billion made outside of actual competition.

The top 12 earners made over $100 million, finishing with Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott at $100.4 million in earnings.

New Orleans Pelicans power forward Zion Williams came in at number 47, the last athlete on the list to have made over $50 million last year. The remaining 53 athletes all made between $49.8 million and $37.5 million in 2024.

Top-earner Ronaldo scored his massive salary after transferring to Saudi Arabia’s Al Nassar and from being a long-time star member of the Portugal national team. The Portuguese native also made a hefty $45 million of his earnings through off-field endorsements.

The move to Al Nassar has so far proved successful for the veteran player, with Ronaldo scoring 82 goals throughout 90 games playing for the club. In September, he also became the first man to claim 900 career goals.

Runner-up top earner Curry made his mark in 2024 as a top performer for Team USA at the Paris Olympics. Curry’s mastery on the court helped earn the squad a gold medal, taking victory over France in their home country.

Tyson Fury took third place on the list, earning $140 million from his boxing salary and winnings, plus a reported $7 million in endorsements.

The lack of women on the 2024 list comes after women’s sports have seen increased viewership. Nielson reported 19 million viewers on average for the 2024 Women’s NCAA tournament final game between Iowa and South Carolina, featuring rising star Caitlin Clark. The game was the first time viewership for the women’s final was higher than for the men’s final.

Viewership also soared at the 2024 Olympic Games, where Team USA clinched gold in the women’s soccer finals. NBC Sports reported 9.4 million viewers during that game.

Outside of the tournaments, both the NWSL and WNBA saw record highs in viewership last year. The NWSL saw an 18% increase in viewership for their championship game in November. Over the course of the season, the league saw a fivefold gain from 2023, reaching 18.7 million total viewers.

The WNBA reported a 115% increase from 2023 for their championship game, estimating 1.6 million viewers on average.