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Cristiano Ronaldo has found himself in the first position of the highest paid footballers of the year, earning 125 million dollars during the past twelve months... But his very appearance on this list was not at all surprising to him - after all, he is the first team athlete to manage to earn a billion dollars during his career, before taxes.
We wondered how he actually earns his big bucks? From using his social networks to contracts worth several million dollars, Ronaldo certainly knows how to make the most of his popularity.
An impressive move to Manchester United
Ronaldo has been named the most popular athlete and has more than 500 million followers across all of his social media platforms, including Facebook (149 million), Instagram (348 million) and Twitter (94.5 million).
This summer, twelve years after leaving Manchester United for Real Madrid, Ronaldo decided to "return home". Forbes reports that his move is worth $70 million, including his salary and bonuses.
The famous number 7 earns its money
Even ten years after leaving Manchester, he is still the talk of the town at Old Trafford.
His loyal fans immediately bought the football legend's new jerseys just 12 hours after the announcement that he was returning to the famous team and brought his team, and him, a huge profit.
Number one influencer
According to reports, Ronaldo charges a million dollars per paid post on Instagram, which is why he earns the most on this platform.
Moreover, numerous magazines claim that he earns more than 40 million dollars a year from Instagram alone. The famous athlete uses his powerful influence in different ways - if you remember, some time ago he moved two bottles of Coca Cola from the table during the conference even though the brand was a sponsor of the sporting event and put a bottle of water in their place, which cost the Coca Cola company quite a lot.
The same endeavor was repeated by his colleagues, but we must admit that they were not as convincing as him. Coca Cola lost billions of dollars because of his move, while water brands got a chance to burn. According to announcements, Evian promoted Ronald's comment, while the World Health Organization joined the whole story, emphasizing its stance against sugar.
Contract with Nike
And while Ronaldo seems to be making enough money from social media alone, his lifetime contract with Nike brings him a hefty sum every month, which will continue even after he retires from the world of professional sports.
Signed in 2016, this contract is considered historic and marked only the third time that the famous company offered such a partnership to an athlete - the previous two were LeBron James and Michael Jordan. According to Forbes, Ronaldo received a billion dollars from that contract, while in just one year he earned 474 million.