Sports is big business. This is true globally and in Kenya, sports has created multi-millionaires, especially in athletics. Our sports heroes, however, earn peanuts compared to the dollar billionaires from other parts of the world that owe their riches to their prowess in the field, track, golf courses and other sports arena. A recently released list of the richest sportsmen shows golfer, Tiger Woods, as the highest paid athlete in the world, getting $78.1 million a year in salaries, winnings and endorsements. Tennis player Roger Federer and basketball player Kobe Bryant are second and third respectively.
Globally stars like David Beckham ($47 million), Cristiano Ronaldo ($44 million) and Lionel Messi ($41 million) are the highest earning footballers and ranked eighth, ninth and tenth on the Forbes list. The Forbes list of Africa’s highest paid footballers based solely on their annual salaries are:
Yaya Toure
Country of citizenship: Ivory Coast
Club: Manchester City
Annual salary: $18.2 million
The 28 year-old Ivorian midfielder is the highest paid African player in the English Premier league. He made global headlines last summer when he left Barcelona (after a very successful streak) to join his elder brother Kolo at Manchester City. That proved to be a smart move because Toure currently earns $320,000 a week. Other compensation includes an image rights payment of $2.5 million a year and an additional $1.3 million bonus every time Manchester City qualifies for the Champions League.
Samuel Eto’o
Country of citizenship: Cameroon
Club: Anzhi
Annual salary: $13.4 million
The revered Cameroonian striker is a four-time winner of the African Player of the Year award. He scored over 100 goals with previous club Barcelona FC over a five season period. His weekly take-home pay stands at $300,000. Eto’o bagged the African Player of the Year award for three consecutive years in 2003, 2004 and 2005.
Didier Drogba
Country of citizenship: Ivory Coast
Club: Galatasaray
Annual salary: $12.9 million
One of the most highly rated strikers in the world, Drogba is currently the highest goal-scorer for the Cote D’Ivoire national soccer team and is Chelsea’s 6th highest goal scorer of all time. Currently his earnings stand at $185,000 a week. The 33 year-old has endorsement deals with Nike, Pepsi, Samsung and Orange France. Large heart: Has committed some $5 million to building a children’s home in Abidjan.
Seydou Keita
Country of citizenship: Mali
Club: Dalian Aerbin
Annual salary: 12 million
Born in Bamako, Mali he has previously for Barcelona and is a key player in the Mali national team. Keita started playing for Mali in 2000 and has so far represented the country in six African Cup of Nations tournaments. Previously, he helped the under-20s finish third at the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship in Nigeria, scoring in the last match against Uruguay and being named the tournament’s best player.
Emmanuel Adebayor
Country of citizenship: Togo
Club: Tottenham
Annual salary: $10 million
Born to Nigerian parents in Togo, the Manchester City striker started out his career playing for OC Agaza, a Togolese football club based in Lome. In July 2009 he exited Arsenal, signing a five-year contract with Manchester City, for a transfer fee of $40 million. Earns $220,000 a week. In January signed a loan deal to play for Real Madrid. Endorses energy drink, Power horse.
FORBES