What do Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, and Floyd Mayweather now have in common? All three of these world famous athletes now make up the list of sports-persons to surpass the $1 billion earnings mark at some point in their lucrative careers. After Mayweather’s recent victory over the notorious UFC fighter Conor McGregor, Mayweather has joined the club at one time only populated by the Nike power team. The famed and sometimes controversial boxer recently netted a cool $300 million for what is said to be his last career fight a little over two years after he was said to have ‘retired.’ Prior to the fight, Mayweather had reportedly made over $700 million in a career that started over 20 years ago. Jordan, now the owner of the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets, joined the club in 2015 while Woods was at one time part of the list as well according to Forbes.
However, the main distinction between Mayweather and the other two billionaires is how they found their way into the club. While Jordan and Woods both made a substantial amount of earnings from their respective sports, their main source of income came from various endorsements. This includes Nike and Gatorade among many many others.
Floyd on the other hand, has obtained a huge amount of his fortune from fighting and the perks that come with having a sport that uses Pay-Per-View (PPV). The money from fans that buy a nights worth of fights on PPV gets divvied up between Mayweather and his opponent, this time being McGregor, who were already slated to make $100 million and $30 million respectively BEFORE the Showtime PPV money kicked in.
Next up to join the nine-0 group? That looks to be like another familiar Nike face, LeBron James. The face of basketball for over a decade inked a lifetime deal with the company just two years ago that is thought to be close to the billion-dollar range, if not over. In the meantime though, Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather will enjoy his induction into the most prolific of groups in sports history.
